Martin Caraher

The state of cooking in England: the relationship of cooking skills to food choice

This article uses data from the 1993 Health and Lifestyles Survey of England to present findings on how, why and when people use cooking skills; where and from whom people learn these skills. The implications for policy are explored. The survey data suggests that socio‐economic status and education are associated with the sources of people’s knowledge about cooking. The first or prime source of learning about cooking skills was reported to be mothers; cooking classes in school were cited as the next most important by the majority of correspondents, with some class and educational variations. The importance of mothers as sources of information on cooking skills is observed in all social classes. What emerges is a population unsure of specific cooking techniques and lacking in confidence to apply techniques and cook certain foods. Women still bear the burden of cooking for the household, with four out of every five women respondents cooking on most or every day, compared with one in five men. This may be related to the large number of men who claim to have no cooking skills (one in five).

The impact of a community-based food skills intervention on cooking confidence, food preparation methods and dietary choices – an exploratory trial

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the feasibility of undertaking a food skills intervention study in areas of social deprivation aimed at altering cooking confidence, food preparation methods and dietary choices. DESIGN A standardised skills programme was implemented in community-based settings. Pre- (T1) and post-intervention (T2) and 6-month follow-up (T3) measures (7-day diaries and self-administered questionnaires) were undertaken in intervention and comparison groups. SETTING Eight urban communities in Scotland. SUBJECTS One hundred and thirteen adults living in areas of social deprivation. RESULTS It was clear that many subjects led fragmented lives and found commitment to intervention classes problematic. Sixty-three subjects completed the final (T3) assessments. The response to each component varied due to inability to attend sessions, illness, study requirements, employment, moving out of the area, change in circumstances, loss of interest and loss of postal questionnaires. At baseline, reported consumption of fruit and vegetables was low (mean frequency 8.1 +/- 4.78 times per week). Fruit intake increased significantly (P < 0.05) between T1 and T2 in the intervention group (1.7 +/- 2.36 to 2.7 +/- 3.28 times per week) only. Between T1 and T3, there was a significant increase (P < 0.05) in intervention subjects who reported confidence in following a recipe (67-90%,). CONCLUSIONS This exploratory trial shows that a food skills intervention is likely to have a small but positive effect on food choice and confidence in food preparation. A full-scale randomised controlled trial in this hard-to-reach group would require a range of flexible approaches rather than a fully defined intervention, and presents challenges for trial design.

Access to healthy foods: Part I. Barriers to accessing healthy foods: Differentials by gender, social class, income and mode of transport

This paper examines the issues of access to food and the influences people face when shopping for a healthy food basket. It uses data from the Health Edu cation Authoritys 1993 Health and Lifestyles Survey to examine the barriers people face in accessing a healthy diet. The main findings are that access to food is primarily determined by income, and this is in turn closely related to physical resources available to access healthy food. There is an associated class bias over access to sources of healthy food. The poor have less access to a car, find it harder to get to out-of-town shopping centres and thus are less able to carry and transport food in bulk. The majority of people shop in supermarkets as they report that local shops do not provide the services people demand and that food choice and quality are limited. In tackling food poverty and pro moting healthy eating, health promotion practice needs to address these struc tural issues as opposed to relying on psycho-social models of education based on the provision of information and choice.

Confident, fearful and hopeless cooks: Findings from the development of a food‐skills initiative

One of the many barriers to a healthier diet in low‐income communities is a presumed lack of practical food skills. This article reports findings from exploratory qualitative research conducted with potential participants in a cooking skills intervention, in low income communities in Scotland. The research found widely varying levels of skill and confidence regarding cooking, supported the need for a community‐based intervention approach, and demonstrated the importance of consumer research to inform the content of interventions. Challenges the view that low income communities lack skills, suggesting that food skills should be defined more broadly than “cooking from scratch”. Other barriers to healthy eating, such as poverty, food access and taste preferences, remain important.

Can't cook, won't cook: A review of cooking skills and their relevance to health promotion

AbstractThis paper explores the relevance of cooking skills to modern living and health promotion practices. Drawing on UK data and particularly the 1993 English Health and Lifestyles Survey but in terms common to many western economies, the paper explores the health education implications of the possible demise of cooking skills. The paradox of low skills and confidence alongside high interest in food is explored. The evidence linking cooking skills to health is explored. A schema of different policy and theoretical perspectives on the teaching of cooking skills is outlined. Although even within the UK there is variation in educational practice, a case is made for the inclusion of cooking skills within a co-ordinated health promotion approach, based on a health development framework. Cooking classes or some practical aspect of ‘hands-on’ skills could feature in a young persons curriculum at some stage at school as part of a wider education about life skills and citizenship. There is little point in purv...

Children's views of cooking and food preparation

A series of consultations with eight‐ and nine‐year‐old children in three schools in England and Wales are set out. The aim of the consultation was to determine how children view the world of cooking and food. A technique called draw and write was used to ascertain the views of the young people. The reports from the children in this survey display a disparate food culture. The Wales and Herefordshire schools showed a greater propensity for chips and fried foods as the mainstay of many meals, but this inclination was less evident in the London school. Overall the research suggests a lot of commonality, but also differences between the schools in terms of how food culture is interpreted geographically.

The Public Health Responsibility Deal: Brokering a deal for public health, but on whose terms?

UNLABELLED Coalitions of multinational food and drink businesses have pledged to reformulate their products and to market them responsibly. Largely business-led and self-regulated, the integrity of these voluntary initiatives has been questioned. The Public Health Responsibility Deal in England is an example of a voluntary initiative that is government-led. Does this approach provide evidence that with public leadership there is potential for voluntary actions to deliver meaningful results for public health? METHODS The subject of the research is the calorie reduction initiative of the Responsibility Deal. Source material was obtained primarily through a series of UK Freedom of Information requests and comprises previously unpublished Department of Health documentation relating to relevant meetings held during 2011 and 2012. RESULTS The Responsibility Deal approach to calorie reduction deliberately involves the food industry in the specification of the measures it is to implement (reformulation and portion control). Finding the common ground between private and public interests has resulted in the deflection of public health objectives and the preclusion of adequate monitoring and evaluation. CONCLUSIONS The Responsibility Deal approach is fundamentally flawed in its expectation that industry will take voluntary actions that prioritise public health interests above its own. Being government-led counts for little in the absence of sanctions to drive compliance. Instead the initiative affords private interests the opportunity to influence in their favour the public health policies and strategies that affect their products.

When chefs adopt a school? An evaluation of a cooking intervention in English primary schools

This article sets out the findings from research on the impact of a, UK based, chefs in schools teaching programme on food, health, nutrition and cookery. Professional chefs link with local schools, where they deliver up to three sessions to one class over a year. The research measured the impact of a standardised intervention package and changes in food preparation and consumption as well as measuring cooking confidence. The target group was 9-11year olds in four schools. The main data collection method was a questionnaire delivered 2weeks before the intervention and 2weeks afterwards. There was a group of four matched control schools. Those taking part in the intervention were enthused and engaged by the sessions and the impact measures indicated an intention to change. There were gains in skills and confidence to prepare and ask for the ingredients to be purchased for use in the home. Following the session with the chef, the average reported cooking confidence score increased from 3.09 to 3.35 (by 0.26 points) in the intervention group - a statistically significant improvement. In the control group this change was not statistically significant. Childrens average reported vegetable consumption increased after the session with the chef, with the consumption score increasing from 2.24 to 2.46 points (0.22 points) again, a statistically significant increase with no significant changes in the control group. The research highlights the need to incorporate evaluation into school cooking initiatives as the findings can provide valuable information necessary to fine-tune interventions and to ensure consistency of the healthy eating messages.

The Influence of TV and Celebrity Chefs on Public Attitudes and Behavior Among the English Public

The claim from many health promoters in the United Kingdom that TV and cooking programs influence the way food is prepared and cooked is explored using data from a large quantitative survey of the English population supported by focus group research. TV cooking programs rate low as an influence on cooking behavior. The viewers of TV cooking programs see them as entertainment and adopt a sophisticated approach to their viewing. The celebrity chef is seen as an entertainer and not necessarily someone who will provide reliable advice on cooking and health matters. The results suggest that the use of public information or specific educationally commissioned programs from a health promotion perspective are limited in their appeal. Cooking programs appear to have an influence on the aesthetics of viewing, with viewers using them as a window on a wider social and cultural world. The implications of these findings are that health promotion policy and practice should be reoriented to support factors identified as important in helping people learn about cooking, such as the family and schools.

Access to shops: The views of low-income shoppers

Concern is mounting as the retail stranglehold upon access to food grows. Research on the implications of restructuring retailing and health inequality has failed to involve low-income consumers in this debate. This paper reports on an exercise conducted for the UK Governments, Social Exclusion Units Policy Action Team on Access to Shops. The survey provides a useful baseline of the views of low-income groups in England. The choices that people on low income can make were found to be dominated by certain factors such as income and, most importantly, transport. Consumers reported varying levels of satisfaction with retail provision. The findings suggest gaps between what people have, what they want and what the planning process does and does not offer them. Better policy and processes are needed to include and represent the interests of low-income groups.