Food from a sociological perspective

The aim of this article is to examine, from a sociological point of view, the roles, functions, attributes, meanings and practices connected to the concept of food. Food is the symbol of socio-cultural realities, the product cyclically adapted to environmental, structural and cultural changes in which it is inserted. Now more than ever, the variegated and complex universe of food makes up a privileged observatory for the understanding of the marked transformation taking place in post-modern societies. The modern press, television, and publishing industries continuously grind out questions regarding food, both as to diet and health, as well as to recipes and loisir. Food is ever-present in conversation, in opinions, in education, in daily life. For this reason, it can be considered a means of communication through which the social agent expresses himself and his own view of the world. Feasting, enjoyment, pleasure, sociality, worry, excess, waste: when the meaning of food goes beyond edible.