Food culture at school

Abstract

In the industrialized world, nutrition has predominantly relied on the consumption of ultra-processed foods, disregarding homemade and natural diets. This shift has disrupted long-established dietary habits and has contributed to the emergence of various diseases, including obesity, heart conditions, and fatty liver, among others. In Brazil, democratic federal governments from the 1990s to 2016 implemented several public policies focused on nutrition, aiming to disseminate nutritional knowledge and restore the importance of Brazilian food culture, which was being overshadowed by the consumption of ultra-processed foods. This retrieval effort has encouraged a significant portion of the population to modify their eating habits. The appropriation of food culture by individuals strengthens their regional, national, and cultural identity, connected to the history of their country. This article aims to report on actions taken with students from the public education system in the city of Assis, São Paulo, grounded in the theoretical foundations of historical-cultural psychology, in order to promote a deeper understanding of the historical and contemporary formation of Brazilian food culture. The study demonstrated that food and nutritional education play a crucial role in fostering reflection on eating behavior patterns, while also reinforcing the history and identity of the Brazilian people.