Constraints and possibilities in the thrown togetherness of feeding the family

Abstract

Purpose Macro-social disruptions and evolutions open up new possibilities for feeding the family. This paper aims to review prior constraints imposed by the gendered history of care work as part of the moral economy, with particular focus on how food traditions and routines reproduce family relations. Design/methodology/approach An assemblage perspective provides an appropriate theoretical lens to trace such emergent reconfigurations. Findings The paper takes as its focus three macro shifts with the potential to incite more and less intentional changes to the realities of feeding the family: changes in home life and organization of care, dads’ participation in feeding the family and innovation in food systems. Research limitations/implications Theoretical contributions reveal how shifting macro-social structures constrain and shape trajectories for the work of feeding the family. Practical implications Practical implications focus on how creative family members, marketers and policymakers influence arrangements, capacities and practices of family life. Originality/value This commentary brings an assemblage view of family life that proposes potential lines of flight when considering macro-context shifts, with particular attention to the relationship between food and family.