Wilson - Pass the Tofu, Please

Wilson demonstrates the popularization of healthy eating concepts in the baby boon generation. Using the example of Asian foods which are mostly vegetarian based, Wilson makes the argument that American baby boomers experience the food of the ‘other’ while also incorporating ideas of their “holistic unity of spiritual and physical wellness” thus creating new cultural ideals. This new ethos is represented by the idealization of the “natural” Asian lifestyle (the past) which to some extent is brought into mainstream American culture (the modern) creating a fusion of both food and cultural norms that blend together ethnic regions and ideas—Asian with American.

Wilson also states that theses baby boomers, who as they age, have tended to evolve from their early bohemian ideals to more capitalistic leanings. This is true in general that as people have more responsibilities and income they tend to want economic stability and security as well. Though it is interesting to note that this generation of “Bobos” tended to hold onto some of their rebelliousness and they chose to invest their money in industries that created a more healthful environment than the previous generation. They used food as an element of resistance, as a counterculture culinary protest to the “McWorld” of American foodstuffs. Asian food represented foodways and healthways that provided an alternative to the over-processed foods of modern American markets.

These concepts changed not only eating habits but also influenced consumer marketing strategies. Asian elements were used as ploys to appeal to health conscious consumers. In many health food stores, the ‘ancient wisdom’ is invoked to sell products. In fact, many of the products sold in the organic/health section of Cape Breton supermarkets feature Asian logos, such as Vitasoy Tofu and Mame Soybean Miso, thus demonstrating the pervasiveness of the Asian ideal of healthy foodways even though many of these products are produced right here in North America.