Main types of food outlets in urban
areas:
1. Local
food stalls
2. Multinational
corporations
3. Supermarkets
Local food stalls:
 |
Illustrated
in the image is one of the local food stall or “doubles man” located on Queen
Street in the city center of Arima also known as the “Dial”. Doubles is one of
the major local food cuisines and is loved by almost all Trinidadians.
The following video sheds some light into what the famous local cuisine known as “Doubles” actually is:
Food
is seen to be a material aspect of culture its cultural transmission occurs
through oral communication and first hand observation and allows for the
passing down of local traditional knowledge (Mark et al 2008) and this serves the
main purpose of educating the public both local and foreigners of “trini”
culture. By doing this they would become more appreciative of it and aspire to
learn to cook the items or continuously buy them and thus ensuring the success
of the city Centre. Examples of local cuisine include: Doubles, Gyros, Ground
provision and callalo, Corn Soup and many many more.
The video shows a variety of local food items found on the busy commercial streets of the city center:
Multinational Corporations:
Multinational
corporations are very important transitional agents in the global economy and development
(Fobete 2005). They are basically companies that set up in other countries usually
less developed nations and carry out their production process there. The
companies are seen to be the “parent company” and the countries that they set
up shop in are seen to be the “subsidiary companies”.
Multinational
corporations include places such as KFC, Subway and Mario’s that are located on
almost all commercial zones across Trinidad as represented in the image below. These
corporations pose many positive and negative consequences to the commercial
zone and to the city center as well.
Illustrated
in the image are two of the major Multinational Corporations that exist in Trinidad.
KFC and Subway are located on almost all urban centers such the city center of
Arima.
One
major advantage of multinational outlets in city centers is that its boosts
the economy of the commercial zones. By setting up production which in this
case is a food restaurant, they attract customers which in turn generate income
when the persons pay for their food items.
Linked
to this, is the increased diversity in food options
which occur. With these foreign food places, varying cultures come together to
thrive in one area and somewhat forms a hybridized culture which is dominant in
Trinidad where persons see KFC and Subway and other food outlets as part of our
cuisine. Thus, persons have a wide choice of food options and do have to reside
themselves to eating the same thing over and over again. This encourages
persons to visit the commercial zones to take advantage of the wide variety
that they tend to offer as seen in the image above.
Likewise,
multinational
outlets in commercial zones are seen to be convenient and cheap.
Their outlets are located in the heart of the city to reach the maximum
population and persons can either eat in or take the food away. In addition,
the food is prepared in a short time and although this occurs persons are still
able to get warm food whilst in a hurry. Also, multinational outlets are seen
to be very cheap as compared to other food items found in the commercial zone
and would thus help individuals save money.
The
following link summarizes the pros and cons of multinational corporations to
the economy:
On
the other hand, there are many drawbacks to multinational outlets in city
centers. One such draw is the process of cultural hegemony that occurs.
This is the process whereby one culture dominates the other and I see as better
or more preferred by the locals. This is evident in the city centers in
Trinidad like Arima, where persons on a daily basis prefer to purchase from multinational
outlets over local foods even though some of them are around the same
prices. Many persons also state that they prefer to buy a box of KFC or Subway
as the case may be than buying a box with local cuisine.
The video shows a discussion between choosing KFC over local foods:
Another
major negative effect of the high accessibility of multinational outlets in
commercial zones leads to unhealthy food choices. This is as many
of the multinational outlets that dominate commercial zones are seen to create
less healthy food options for the public. These foods are somewhat classified
as “junk food” and seen to have many detrimental effects on the human body.
This is as these foods do not contain the nutrients that your body needs to
stay healthy and they usually contain high levels of sugars that put the metabolism under stress
and this can cause many health issues to the body.
To
find out more about the effects of junk food on the body, click the following
link: http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/fast-food-nutrition-junk-foods-effect-on-your-body.html#b
The
following link is to a newspaper article from the online Newsday entitled “Should
fast foods franchise be banned?”: http://newsday.co.tt/businessday/0,157314.html
Supermarkets:
Supermarkets
are a very important aspect of urban cities as they provide
an importance food source for human beings; unprepared foods that is. Supermarkets
and food shops also known as grocery stores according to the Agricultural Sector Report of Trinidad and Tobago is a very important retail store in the country of Trinidad (CSO 1991). They sell
mainly non-cooked food items, processed foods and some fresh food produce (ibid).
Illustrated
in the image is the Hearty Food Grocery Store that is located in the heart of
the urban city center of Arima. It provides a multiplicity of food items to all
persons in the commercial zone.
These thus provide a major necessity to the citizens visiting the urban centers. Humans are dependent on food and this is a major advantage to be located in the commercial zones as they would have a maximum connection to the people and would easily accessible by car or by walking. In addition, in supermarkets persons have a wise plethora of goods that persons want at varying prices. Therefore, they cater for varying classes in society and varying preferences. Likewise, due to the large size of supermarkets there are more employees working there and thus customers do not have to wait in long lines to purchase their products. Prices tend to be lower in groceries as they have to compete with other groceries in the area or in other commercial zones and thus act as a bargain to the people in urban centers.
References:
CSO. 1991."Trinidad and Tobago: An Agricultural Sector
Study of Tobago." Tobago: Tobago House of Assembly.
Fitday.com. "Fast
Food Nutrition: Junk Food’s Effect On Your Body / Nutrition / Healthy
Eating." 2014. http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/fast-food-nutrition-junk-foods-effect-on-your-body.html#b
(accessed 1 Apr 2014).
Fobete, Dingha Ngoh. 2005.
Multinational corporation and third world development. Ravensburg:
Grinverl.
Lears, T.J Jackson. 1985."The
concepts of cultural hegemony: Problems and Possibilities." The
American Historical Review 90, no. 3:567-593. Accessed 2nd April,
2014.. doi:http://xroads.virginia.edu/~DRBR2/lears.pdf.
Preservearticles.com.
"What are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Multinational
Corporations?." 2014.
http://www.preservearticles.com/2012010319694/what-are-the-advantages-and-disadvantages-of-multinational-corporations.html
(accessed 5 Apr 2014).
Schanbacher, William D.2010. The
politics of food. Westport, CT: Praeger Security International.
Stark, Miriam T, Brenda
J Bowser, Lee Horne and Carol Kramer. 2008.Cultural transmission and
material culture. Tucson: University of Arizona Press.
|
No comments:
Post a Comment