Call for Papers on food history: EATING ON THEMOVE (19th - 21st centuries)

International Commission for Research into European Food History
Call for Papers: EATING ON THE MOVE (nineteenth to twenty-first centuries), 7-10 September 2021,Rome, Roma Tre University

Deadline for application: November 30th, 2020

The introduction of new forms of transport (trains, ships, cars, airplanes) has not only affected the way people travel, it has also led to a transformation in the way they eat. The evolution achieved in little more than a century by on-board and motorway dining services has meant that they are able to cater to a wide range of travellers’ needs, from the meals offered during the nineteenth century on board the first transatlantic passenger ships transporting migrants from Europe to the Americas, to those provided from the second half of the twentieth century in flight and at motorway service areas.

The relationship between food and travel from the nineteenth century to the twenty-first century can be seen in various ways for their interdependence with numerous aspects of social and economic life. The following suggested research areas, to which other proposals may be added, will be covered:
- The evolution of dining services offered during travel (19th-21st centuries): dining on board trains, ships, and airplanes and along motorways
- Influences on the development of food preparation technologies and industries specialized in preserved, precooked, and packaged foods
- The appearance of new professions: the on-board chef, stewards, hostesses, etc.
- Food as a vehicle for cultural heritage
- Social divisions on board new forms of transport
- Travelling in search of food: the development of wine and food tourism
- Travelling at home: appearance of ethnic restaurants and cuisine
- Food and “slowtravel”: the trails of ancient pilgrims, mountain trails, cycling paths
- Through the eyes of others:travel and food in developing and industrialised countries
- Food safety on the move
- Supply-side standards: the evolution of the notions “proper meal” and “snack” in the context of “food on the move”
- Service personnel: what was the provisioning of the people who prepared and served “food on the move” but also those who piloted and maintained ships, trains, cars and airplanes?
- Food and uncommon forms of travel:from the supply of armies to that of astronauts in space

All information and requirements are to be found via this link.