This is not a food blog. You will find no recipes here.

This is a blog about how we talk about eating when we’re eating (and even when we’re not). From our mealtime conversations to the words we use to describe ourselves as eaters, our mouths are full of sounds, words, and eating talk. We are vegetarians, dieters, gourmets, fussy eaters, carb-lovers, omnivores, snackers, grazers, and foodies.

We are eaters

The ways in which we talk about eating, and especially when we’re eating, shapes our understandings of eating. From the smallest of sounds­­–the mmms and ahhs of pleasure at that mouthful of chocolate or cup of tea–to how our mealtimes are guided by our food likes and dislikes, as much as cultural norms about what constitutes a mealtime. Language and eating are more closely connected than we might have thought.

Language makes a difference to what we eat, how we eat, and the kinds of eater that we can become. In matters in how we use it to claim the rights to know what our kids ‘like’ to eat, in how we might call someone a ‘fussy’ or ‘picky’ eater while another might define themselves as a ‘gourmet’ or foodie, in how we can be held accountable for eating something that we don’t usually eat. The food hasn’t changed, but how we talk about it, has. We are, in effect, eating our words.

This blog is about those words, and what it means to eat.

We are researchers

This is not just a blog about random thoughts. It is based on research from across many disciplines, from psychology to linguistics, sensory science to sociology. Each blog post will endeavour to integrate empirical evidence and (where possible) links to the original research papers so that research findings can find their way back into our everyday lives.

Welcome to the world of eating talk.

This work is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0