Summary

Dear Colleagues,

The Encyclopedia journal invites contributions to its new topical collection, "Food and Food Culture," which aims to explore the multifaceted dimensions of food as a cultural, social, and economic phenomenon. This collection seeks to provide a comprehensive and interdisciplinary examination of food practices, traditions, and innovations across different societies and historical periods.

We welcome submissions that delve into the cultural significance of food, including studies on traditional cuisines, culinary rituals, and the role of food in shaping identities and communities. Articles may also investigate the evolution of food products, their uses, and the development of restaurants and dining establishments as cultural institutions.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Ethnographic studies of regional and traditional food practices;
  • Historical analyses of culinary traditions and their transformations;
  • Globalization, sustainability, and ethics in contemporary food systems;
  • Culinary practices and their transformation through migration, tourism, or innovation;
  • Traditional and regional food products and their socio-cultural meanings;
  • Sustainability and ethical considerations in contemporary food production and consumption.

We welcome a wide range of perspectives that examine how food is produced, used, shared, and understood across diverse cultural and historical contexts.

This collection aligns with the Encyclopedia journal's mission to disseminate high-quality, peer-reviewed, open-access content that serves as a reliable reference for both researchers and the general public interested in accurate and advanced knowledge on specific topics. We encourage submissions from scholars across disciplines, including anthropology, history, sociology, cultural studies, and food science. By bringing together diverse perspectives on food and its cultural contexts, this collection aims to foster a deeper understanding of the ways in which food practices reflect and shape human experiences.

For submission guidelines and more information, please visit the Encyclopedia journal's website: https://www.mdpi.com/journal/encyclopedia.

Dr. Michele Fontefrancesco
Collection Editor

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Editor
Michele Filippo Fontefrancesco

Institution: 1. Department of Sociology, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, 20123 Milan, Italy 2. Department of Anthropology, Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, UK

Interests: food anthropology; food heritage and traditional knowledge; food and rural development; globalization and innovation in food systems; restaurants and food entrepreneurship

Entries
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Paprika: Production, Culture and Cuisine
Paprika is a spice obtained from the dehydration and grinding of red pepper fruits, primarily from the Capsicum annuum species. Its etymology comes from Slavic Balkanian languages and was adopted in Hungarian. The crop originated in America, where it was domesticated by pre-Columbian civilizations over 6000 years ago (specifically in present-day Mexico) for medicinal and culinary purposes. Following the Spanish arrival in the Americas in the 15th century, pepper was introduced first in Spain (Sevilla, Extremadura and Murcia) and later in the rest of the Old World. The agroclimatic conditions of different Mediterranean regions made it an essential crop, turning these regions into centers of production and giving this spice a sense of cultural identity. The purpose of this study lies in the technological and nutritional significance of paprika in the modern food industry, where it is demanded as a natural colorant, preservative and source of bioactive compounds, such as antioxidants and carotenoids. Despite its prevalence, the existing literature is often fragmented into specific disciplines. This article distinguishes itself by proposing a holistic approach expanding the study from its historical evolution to its socioeconomic impact, including its agronomic characteristics and industrial-scale production. It is recommended that the research community and producers focus on the sustainability of processing methods while preserving cultural authenticity, ensuring the preservation of the functional and culinary relevance of this spice.
  • 37
  • 17 Sep 2026
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
West African Culinary Globalization in Contemporary America
West African cuisine is among the world’s most complex and historically significant culinary traditions, shaped by diverse ecosystems, centuries of trans-regional trade, and the cultural heritage of more than three hundred distinct ethnic groups spanning the Atlantic coast and the Sahel. West African cuisine has undergone a significant cultural and culinary transformation in the American food landscape, moving from relative obscurity to mainstream visibility. This entry examines the rise of West African cuisine in the United States, with particular attention to jollof as a cultural symbol of identity, diaspora, and culinary diplomacy. Drawing on academic scholarship, food journalism, and primary cultural sources, the entry traces the historical roots of West African foodways through the transatlantic slave trade and their enduring influence on American culinary traditions. It further explores how contemporary chefs, restaurateurs, and food writers of West African descent, including Eric Adjepong, Pierre Thiam, and Kwame Onwuachi, have elevated the cuisine within American fine dining and popular culture. The entry also addresses the role of social media, particularly the viral “Jollof Wars,” in amplifying West African culinary culture globally, culminating in UNESCO’s recognition of Senegalese jollof rice as an element of intangible cultural heritage. Questions of structural barriers, authenticity, and representation are critically examined. The entry argues that while West African cuisine is experiencing unprecedented visibility in America, its mainstream acceptance remains mediated by cultural filters that risk diluting its complexity and richness. Ultimately, this entry positions West African cuisine not merely as a culinary trend but as a living expression of diasporic identity, cultural resilience, and global influence.
  • 21
  • 17 Sep 2026
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Rural Tourism from a Comparative Perspective: Trends in Europe and Oceania
Rural tourism is defined as a tourism activity in which the visitor’s experience is linked to agricultural activities, rural lifestyles, and traditional cultures. In many geographical contexts, especially in Europe, because the rural economy is so deeply tied to family farming, this form of tourism is referred to as “agritourism”, even though agrotourism is a specific subset of rural tourism defined by the integration of tourism with a working farm or agricultural operation. The entry delineates the transformative dynamics of rural tourism in the context of global shifts towards personalized, experiential travel. It examines how contemporary tourists increasingly seek authentic and immersive experiences as a response to the superficiality of mass tourism. This trend leads travellers to engage deeply with local cultures, thereby fostering connections with community life and prioritizing sustainability. Amidst challenges such as environmental degradation and overtourism, rural tourism emerges as a viable alternative, offering unique, less-congested destinations that cater to travellers’ desire for exclusivity and genuine discovery. The paper traces the historical evolution of rural tourism from its European origins in mid-20th-century agricultural practices to its current status as a vital component of rural development strategies. Through a comparative analysis of two distinct regional scenarios, Europe and Oceania, this article elucidates how local contexts shape tourism practices. The analysis highlights the pivotal role of gastronomy in enriching tourist experiences and emphasizes the need for digital literacy and eco-effectiveness in rural tourism operations. Although the entry does not provide a comprehensive global perspective on rural tourism or a quantitative environmental account of the sector’s impact, it ultimately conveys that rural tourism is a critical engine of regional vitality and sustainability, illustrating the juxtaposition of historical roots and contemporary trends that define this evolving sector.
  • 55
  • 14 Apr 2026
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
Immersive Methods and Biometric Tools in Food Science and Consumer Behavior
Immersive methods and biometric tools provide a rigorous, context-rich way to study how people perceive and choose food. Immersive methods use extended reality, including virtual, augmented, mixed, and augmented virtual environments, to recreate settings such as homes, shops, and restaurants. They increase participants’ sense of presence and the ecological validity (realism of conditions) of experiments, while still tightly controlling sensory and social cues like lighting, sound, and surroundings. Biometric tools record objective signals linked to attention, emotion, and cognitive load via sensors such as eye-tracking, galvanic skin response (GSR), heart rate (and variability), facial electromyography, electroencephalography, and functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Researchers align stimuli presentation, gaze, and physiology on a common temporal reference and link these data to outcomes like liking, choice, or willingness-to-buy. This approach reveals implicit responses that self-reports may miss, clarifies how changes in context shift perception, and improves predictive power. It enables faster, lower-risk product and packaging development, better-informed labeling and retail design, and more targeted nutrition and health communication. Good practices emphasize careful system calibration, adequate statistical power, participant comfort and safety, robust data protection, and transparent analysis. In food science and consumer behavior, combining immersive environments with biometrics yields valid, reproducible evidence about what captures attention, creates value, and drives food choice.
  • 64
  • 31 Dec 2025
Topic Review Peer Reviewed
An Exploration of U.S. Nutritional Diet Policies: A Narrative Review for Transformation Toward Sustainable Food Systems
Background: Current food systems contribute significantly to poor public health and environmental degradation. With increasing rates of chronic disease and undernutrition globally and in the United States of America (U.S.), transforming food systems toward sustainability is a critical public health priority. Objectives: This narrative review aimed to summarize U.S. policies from the past decade relevant to sustainable food systems, focusing on four domains—availability, accessibility, affordability, and desirability—proposed by the 22nd Annual Harvard Nutrition Obesity Symposium. Methods: Systematic searches were conducted using MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, U.S. Congress websites, and Google searches. Studies and policies published between 2013 and 2023 that addressed at least one of the four domains were included. Policies were reviewed according to their alignment with the policy lifecycle framework, encompassing formulation through implementation. Results: A review of the final 632 articles explained that, despite growing interest in sustainable food systems, there is a lack of comprehensive U.S. policies that address the four domains in an integrated manner. Most initiatives were limited in scope, often school-based, and not explicitly sustainability-focused. Food availability and accessibility policies exist but remain fragmented, while affordability and desirability domains are severely underrepresented. Few laws or bills have been enacted or evaluated for population-level or environmental outcomes. Conclusions: Transforming U.S. food systems requires more robust evidence-based policy development and evaluation. There is an urgent need for integrated multisectoral policy frameworks to ensure health, equity, and sustainability across all food system domains.
  • 241
  • 30 Oct 2025

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