Search results

After great Wars, the years that follow are always times of disquiet and uncertainty; the country is shabby and exhausted, but beneath it, there is hope, expectancy, nay! certainty, that better times are coming. Perhaps the golden promise of the fifties and sixties failed to mature, but we entered the seventies with most people confident that the country would turn the corner; it did but unfortunately not the right one! Not inappropriate they have been dubbed the “striking seventies”. The process was not one of recovery but of slow, relentless deterioration. One way of knowing how your country is going is to visit others. At first, prices were cheaper that at home; the £ went farther and was readily acceptabble, but year by year, it seemed that prices were rising, but it was in truth the £ falling in value; no longer so easily changed. Most thinking Continentals had only a sneer for “decadent England”. Kinsmen from overseas wanted to think well of us but simply could not understand what was happening.

Diseases due to nutritional deficiencies might well be considered something from the poverty and grime of Victorian times and unknown to the people of this affluent society. It may come as a shock to many people, therefore, to learn that the rising incidence of rickets among the young in some of our big cities is causing grave concern; that iron deficiency anaemia, not altogether uncommon in women and in the undernourished but rarely of any great severity, is being found in a much more severe form in a great many West Indian infants, the hæmoglobin frequently not amounting to 50%; and that among the many skin lesions of coloured children there is at least the suggestion of riboflavin and perhaps other vitamin deficiencies. All this despite the blessings of the welfare state and a half‐century of local authority personal health services. It casts no reflection on these services, however; their work has resulted in vastly improved child health in this country, which speaks for itself.

The initial shock of devaluing the currency, after so many promises that it would not take place, has passed; only the uncertainty and apprehension remain. It seems an idle exercise to compare the present state of the country's economy with other periods in recent history, such as when in the first Labour Government, we went off the gold standard; at that time, shock was indeed profound and again, the French were cock‐a‐hoop, but the position was complicated by the huge inter‐indebtedness of the Allies in the First War. Or the first devaluation after the Second World War, but both periods were also characterized by public waste and profligate spending. Now, we have to obtain foreign loans and financial backing to keep going, and it is this aspect of the present devaluation which will probably far outweigh any positive advantages. The country's massive external debts were increased by approximately one‐seventh overnight, probably wiping out completely all the repayments made at such great effort since the War. Devaluation of the currency cannot be seen as anything but a grievous blow to the country, presaging hard times ahead for everyone. When promises were being made that devaluation would not take place, there can be little doubt that these were honestly made and, at the time, believed in, for no Government of a country with imports always exceeding exports, would impose such a burden on its people willingly. It must then have been forced upon them.

Until after the war of 1914–18 the development of the knowledge of food chemistry lagged behind in this country, but furthermore the utilisation by the medical profession of the knowledge available also lagged behind. This, whilst being deplored, is understandable, for the scope of the training of the members of the medical profession is so extensive that specialised knowledge, until it becomes general knowledge, cannot be incorporated in the scope of their training. One unfortunate aspect of the situation is that members of the medical profession, rightly regarded by the public as their advisers on food matters, have tended, often inadvertently, to mislead on such questions. To illustrate this point I will quote two flagrant instances. In one of the large democracies a trade feud began between the manufacturers of two kinds of baking powders. One of the powders contained aluminium in the form of alum, the other did not. Both financial groups were powerful and employed many scientific advisers, either directly or indirectly. All evidence for and against aluminium was collected and distributed to anyone who showed the slightest interest in the matter. An English physician became impressed by the argument against the use of aluminium for cooking vessels and circulated his opinion widely, giving evidence of many patients he had cured by cutting out the use of aluminium cooking utensils. This was characterised by a writer to the British Medical Journal as an interesting example of “ faith healing.” There is no scientific evidence that the trace of aluminium that may be dissolved from an aluminium saucepan is in any way harmful. Naturally one cannot argue for the few people who have certain idiosyncrasies, and perhaps it has been the fortune of that physician to meet a large proportion of these among his patients. The whole question was discussed in detail some years ago but, although invited, the physician did not attend. A point, not without significance, is that the analytical figures on which the condemnation of aluminium cooking vessels was based, were proved to be wrong. Had they been correct, a stewpan would only last twenty stews before it was all dissolved away! The second example is that of “digestive” teas. Advocates of so‐called digestive teas base their criticism of ordinary teas on the fact that they contain “tannin” which they aver has some extraordinary effect on the stomach lining and on the process of digestion. Naturally the public believe this, and, presumably remembering that the tanning of hides yields a product, leather, they assume that the stomach by analogy becomes tanned; some members of the medical profession also accept the claim of the vendors of the so‐called digestive teas. It is, of course, well known that there is a large group of substances, in many cases with ill‐defined structure, classed as “tannin,” and among these is the tannin from tea which, however, could not be used for the production of leather from hides. Dr. Roche Lynch was very categorical with regard to the absence of clinical evidence at a meeting some little time ago. He stated that he did not believe that post mortem examination had ever revealed any changes of the stomach which could be associated with heavy consumption of tea. The vast majority of these digestive teas have been examined and the point to be specially noted is that the tannin content of these “special” teas is well up to the average of that for ordinary blends of tea, and in certain cases above the average. The Public Analyst for Birmingham has made some scathing comments on “Tanninless” teas. As he said, the inference from the advertisement matter was that the tea would be “more digestible,” would “promote digestion,” or in one case would “cure indigestion.” Other misleading statements are that “Young tips” have been used, but these, in fact, are higher in tannin content than the normal picking of leaves; and that “stalk” has been eliminated, whereas stalk is lower in tannin content than the leaves themselves. It is, of course, well known that sufferers from digestive disorders are very prone to the effect of “suggestion” and one can assume that the clever advertisements have been the cause of the improvement in the patient's condition. The nations most prone to be influenced by considerations of the effect of food eaten on the functions of the body are the Americans and Germans, the former possibly because methods of advertisement have been developed to a higher pitch of efficiency than anywhere else, and the latter because as Hitler has said of the Germans, they are as a nation most gullible. I have mentioned the collection of data in the case of aluminium, and I will deal later with the development of food chemistry as reflected by the amount of published work. There is an ever increasing flow of papers dealing with this aspect of science. During the war of 1914–1918, there was a remarkable falling off of published work, and doubtless we shall experience a similar diminution during the present war, for food chemists, in common with other chemists, are deflected from their ordinary course, urgent practical problems taking precedence over the more fundamental investigations, the results of which are normally published. Our thoughts naturally turn to the general question of the provision of food in war time in this country. We have had that admirable little book “Feeding the People in War Time,” by Orr and Lubbock, just published; we have had lectures, broadcast talks and discussions, but, whilst practical in some senses, the general scope of these discussions has dealt with the subject from a somewhat academic standpoint—certainly not from the angle of the people who have to produce the food. During a period of war the total nutritional value of any food becomes of paramount importance. It is important to remember, however, that the findings of the dietitian have to be translated into factory practice, and until this has been done academic conclusions do not become effective. One cannot commend too highly the idea that there should be certain foods, basic rations, available in large quantities. Orr and Lubbock suggest that these should be: milk, potatoes, oatmeal, vegetables, bread, sugar and either butter or vitaminised margarine. As far as our knowledge goes at present, such a list of basic foods taken in requisite quantities would not only give sufficient calories but those other constituents of food essential to good health. That these should be available to the housewife is apparent, but unless they are relieved by a proportion of the less essential foods, the diet would become deadly dull; many of us remember our experiences in the army in the last war, how spirits flagged when the bare necessities alone were available, and how, moreover, the addition of those little “extras” would raise the morale of the soldier.

The Report of the Food Investigation Board (the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research) for the year 1934 is, as were its predecessors, a document of first‐rate interest and importance. The Board was established in 1917, and under its terms of reference it has “ to submit an annual programme of research and an annual report.” The revised terms of reference clearly indicate the wide interests, both scientific and industrial, with which the Board is concerned. Its duties are “ to advise generally on the conduct of research on the properties and behaviour of foodstuffs on the scientific problems, including physical and engineering problems, involved in their storage and transport.” The duties of the Board are obviously as far reaching as they could well be. By no means the least interesting feature of these reports taken as a whole is the close connection they show to exist between the laboratory and the market place. This fact alone—which emerges quite naturally as the work which has been done, or is being done, or that which it is proposed to do, is described — gives to these reports a claim on public interest which is almost unique in the annals of Government publications. The people of this country are, whether they generally realise it or not, more affected in their daily life by problems connected with the transport and preservation of foodstuffs than those of any other country. We are far from being self‐supporting. Half the meat we eat comes from overseas. Argentina supplies us with a very large proportion of our chilled beef. Australia and New Zealand have plenty of cattle that would furnish us with good beef, but the difficulty has been to ship it in a chilled as distinct from a frozen state to these shores, On the 18th July, 1933, a first consignment of chilled beef from New Zealand reached the London market. This beef had been stowed on board in an atmosphere containing 10 per cent. of carbon dioxide. It arrived in good condition. This preliminary consignment of chilled beef from the antipodes is very rightly referred to by the Board as “ an event which may well prove historic.” In 1934 four thousand four hundred tons of meat in gas (CO2) storage were sent from Australia and from New Zealand to this country. Thus a new and important chapter in Imperial economic relations has been opened, not inferior in importance to the original introduction of cold transport and of cold storage some fifty years ago. “ Given careful handling the use of gas storage eliminates mould and bacterial slime.” Slime is a thick growth of organisms of the Achromobacter group. It appears more quickly on meat which has a high initial bacterial count at the time of shipment, and the truth of this statement is borne out by the figures given in the Report. Achromobacter growth is inhibited at 0° C in the presence of carbon dioxide ; while Proteus and aerobacter are not thus inhibited, but their optima is 37° C. So that a low temperature and at atmosphere containing 10 per cent. of carbon dioxide suffices to eliminate these troublesome groups of micro organisms from meat during transport. The term “ careful handling ” may perhaps be extended to include good sanitary conditions in the slaughter houses. The Report for 1932 dwells on the need for a plentiful supply of hot water. The older method somewhat neglected this essential, and one bucket of water sufficed for several carcases. A bacterial count of the bacterial content of water which had been used for this purpose showed that with an insufficient supply of water the number of organisms per cubic centimetre varied from two to twenty‐five millions, with five thousand B. coli per ten cubic centimetres. With an abundant supply of water the corresponding figures were fifteen thousand and five ! As the life of meat in store depends on its freedom from bacteria the need for extreme cleanliness in the treatment of meat before it leaves the slaughter house need not be insisted on. The matter has of course received adequate attention in Australia and in New Zealand where beef is being prepared for shipment under the new conditions. Other problems still remain to be considered such as the best methods of stowage to prevent chafing ; degree of humidity in the hold during transport ; air circulation to ensure uniformity in the atmosphere of the hold ; and the maintenance of the correct temperature. If these conditions are complied with the “ bloom,” that is, the natural appearance of the meat, is retained. Otherwise the oxidation of hæmoglobin to methæmoglobin ensues and the “ bloom ” of the meat is lost. “ Bloom,” it is stated, does not affect the nutritive value of the meat, but the absence of “ bloom ” would presumably affect the price of the meat on the wholesale market as it ceases to be a factor when the meat has been cut up into joints. The successful transport of a cargo of chilled beef from Australia and New Zealand therefore depends on its being landed not only in a wholesome condition, but also in a condition that will enable it to compete on at least equal terms with its foreign competitors. This evidently implies the close and effective co‐operation of everybody concerned from the stockbreeder in Australia or in New Zealand to the retailer in London.

The purpose of this paper is to identify consumer segments based on the importance of food quality and prestige benefits when buying food for a special occasion; dinner party with friends.

Using cluster analysis, the importance of food quality benefits (quality, taste and health) and prestige benefits (prestige quality, hedonic, uniqueness, price and social) were investigated. The consumer segments were profiled using individual consumer characteristics (involvement in luxury, willingness to pay and socio-demographics).

Food quality benefits are the most important benefits when buying food for a party with friends and the authors identified four distinct consumer segments based on 20 different food quality and prestige benefits: perfectionists, premium, luxury seeking and value focussed. Three of the four consumer segments (perfectionists, premium and luxury seeking) find conventional food quality benefits important but differ in the importance they attribute to the different prestige benefits. The value focussed segment is not driven by prestige consumption but wants high quality at an affordable price.

This study demonstrates that consumers are driven by different food and prestige benefits when buying food for a special occasion.

This study suggest some important differences between premium consumers, looking for food quality and hedonic benefits, and luxury seeking, with a relatively higher focus on prestige quality, uniqueness and social benefits. This study also identifies a significant distinction between perfectionists and value focussed consumers. Both segments are focussed on food quality benefits but differ in their focus on value and prestige benefits.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate possible cross-cultural consumer segments in the EU aquaculture market and provide direction and focus for marketing strategies for farmed fish products.

Selected psychographic constructs (i.e. category involvement, domain-specific innovativeness, subjective knowledge, suspicion of novelties and optimistic bias) are tested as segmentation basis with the objective of defining a number of cross-border consumer segments with distinctive and clear-cut profiles in terms of consumer perceptions towards farmed fish.

Based on the consumer psychographic profiles, three distinct segments are found: involved traditional, involved innovators and ambiguous indifferent, of which the first two constitute especially interesting targets for market positioning strategies for aquaculture products.

The results of the segmentation analysis opens new horizons in terms of positioning and differentiation of fish products from the aquaculture industry according to the most important potential market segments.

The current research brings insights into different pan-European consumer segments and their characteristics that allow for a corresponding differentiation strategy within the aquaculture industry. The fact that the segments tend to be uniform across all countries suggests a relatively homogeneous or converging European fish-related culture.

Toward achieving a better guest experience, the current study aims to use the word frequency comparison technique to evaluate the types of attributes and services that are used most frequently in guests’ five- and one-star reviews on TripAdvisor. The working-paper also aims to investigate the differences between reviews written by men and women.

A combined sentiment and text analysis was applied to 329,849 UK hotel reviews from UK TripAdvisor to identify factors that influence customer satisfaction, including those with gender differences.

The present findings reveal important differences between the male- and female-produced terms. The results show that female travelers pay more attention to the hotel’s core products and their comfort compared to male travelers. In terms of food and beverage, men’s comments tended to focus on pubs, beer and certain types of food. In contrast, women’s comments were more likely to be related to healthy eating, such as homemade, vegan and vegetarian foods, as well as fruits and healthy breakfasts. Women also pay more attention to the soft skills of staff such as friendliness, helpfulness and welcoming messages.

While core attributes of a hotel stay remain crucial for all guests, disparities exist between the language men and women use to describe them. For core products, women pay more attention to the room’s cleanliness, comfort and features such as bed, pillow, blanket, towel, toiletries and decoration, whereas men pay more attention to the layout, size and type of room. Hotels may use gender as a segmentation variable and use these findings in their marketing campaigns.

This is one of the first studies offering insights into the differences between the male and female reactions to and preferences for hotel services at a national level. Following a novel method, this study has listed and ranked attributes and differentiated them based on gender.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the level of concern and practice of sustainability development and also policy failure in the fast food supply chain.

A questionnaire using Likert scoring recorded variations in current practice and attitudes toward sustainable business. A two-stage cluster analysis was conducted to analyze the multi-attribute ordinal data obtained from the questionnaire.

Significant differences were found among clusters of fast food businesses in terms of their sustainability concern and practice, which is of interest to policy makers, consumers and supply chain partners. Medium-sized fast food dealers emerge with high environmental and social concern, but poor practice; larger retailers and fast food chains appear to have both fair social and environmental awareness and practice; and there is a cluster of small takeaway-specific outlets that have particularly low levels of knowledge of sustainability or sustainable practices. Policy failure is prevalent amongst these businesses and without regulation this represents a possible threat to the sector.

Reliance on stated rather than revealed preferences of the study may limit the implications of this analysis but it is a major step forward in understanding what has in the past been a very difficult sector to investigate due to data paucity.

Fast food is a sector with a lack of transparency which has attracted little academic attention to date, due to the difficulties of empirical analysis rather than lack of interest in a key food consumption sector. The message for the sector is to monitor its act, across all business types or face regulatory and policy intervention.

The research conducts a three-dimensional sustainability analysis of fast food supply chains to investigate the differences and trade-offs between different sustainability dimensions.

Sustainable agriculture implies the ability of agro‐ecosystems to remain productive in the long‐term. It is not easy to point out unambiguously whether or not current production systems meet this sustainability demand. A priori thinking would suggest that organic crops are environmentally favourable, but may ignore the effect of reduced productivity, which shifts the potential impact to other parts of the food provision system. The purpose of this paper is to assess the ecological sustainability of conventional and organic leek production by means of life cycle assessment (LCA).

A cradle‐to‐farm gate LCA is applied, based on real farm data from two research centres. For a consistent comparison, two functional units (FU) were defined: 1ha and 1 kg of leek production.

Assessed on an area basis, organic farming shows a more favourable environmental profile. These overall benefits are strongly reduced when the lower yields are taken into account. Related to organic farming it is therefore important that solutions are found to substantially increase the yields without increasing the environmental burden. Related to conventional farming, important potential for environmental improvements are in optimising the farm nutrient flows, reducing pesticide use and increasing its self‐supporting capacity.

The research is a cradle‐to‐farm gate LCA, future research can be expanded to comprise all phases from cradle‐to‐grave to get an idea of the total sustainability of our present food consumption patterns. The research is also limited to the case of leek production. Future research can apply the methodology to other crops.

To date, there is still lack of clear evidence of the added value of organic farming compared to conventional farming on environmental basis. Few studies have compared organic and conventional food production by means of LCA. This paper addresses these issues.