A while back, Time Magazine had a really interesting photo essay based on Peter Menzel’s book Hungry Planet: What the World Eat.

I thought I would share it here because I thought it was extremely interesting.  It shows 15 families around the world with a week’s worth of food spread out on their table.

Click the picture or here for the link!

In my opinion, some of the most interesting parts of this photo essay were:

1. The amounts of food and quality of food.  Certain countries/cultures had more fresh produce than others, as well as the most obvious… different quantities of food.

2.  Take note of the living space.  Most of the pictures are taken where the family eats.  It’s interesting to try to guess how people experience food based on their environment. Who has a TV in the room?  Who has a table?  I think a lot of this is also based on income but still kind of interesting to think about.

3.  The family unit.  Not necessarily food related, but it’s interesting to see what different cultures consider to be the immediate family.

I should also say that I understand that this is by no means representative of countries or cultures.  Every household is different but I think it’s useful to get a glimpse into the way other people live and eat.

Any other thoughts?