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AbstractObjective: To develop, apply and evaluate the impact of cooking knowledge refresher classes (CKRC) on the cooking skills of university students. Participants: University students who participated in the first phase of the Nutrition and Culinary in the Kitchen (NCK) intervention. Methods: A quasi-experimental cooking class intervention was conducted to reinforce cooking skills. Participants completed a validated online survey before and after the intervention. Paired t-tests or Wilcoxon test were used (p < 0.05). Results: Of the 33 students who answered the survey, 13 participated in the CKRC intervention. Participants reported increased interest in learning how to prepare snacks. Their Self-Efficacy for Using Fruits, Vegetables, and Seasonings (while cooking) increased after the intervention (3.63 ± 0.65 vs. 3.93 ± 0.76; p = 0.032). Conclusions: Even among students who have improved their cooking skills through a cooking intervention program, participation in refresher cooking classes tailored to their needs can reinforce positive outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim Methods Results Conclusions Food literacy programs aim to improve food related skills and knowledge and are selected Governments as a strategy to address dietary intakes at a community level. The purpose of this research is to identify behaviour change techniques in a food literacy program, which were assessed by the achievement of participant goals related to food literacy and dietary behaviour changes.Consensus methods were applied to map behaviour change techniques to an adult food literacy program. A second phase investigation applied content analysis of participant process evaluation data (collected between 2016 and June 2021) to align target behaviours and behaviour change techniques. Chi‐square and ANCOVA were used to assess the statistically significant demographic characteristics, food literacy, and dietary behaviour scores for participants who set goals and recorded changes.A total of 4697 program participants provided evaluation data from the 4‐week food literacy program. Participants who set goals and made changes were statistically more likely to have higher food literacy factor scores (p < 0.001) and fruit serves (p = 0.004). Statistical analysis showed that participants were more likely to have set goals and recorded changes if they were female (p < 0.001), older (p < 0.001), higher education level (p < 0.001), had a higher socioeconomic status (p = 0.049), lived with children (p = 0.014), were born in Australia (p = 0.019), or did not identify as Indigenous (p < 0.001). The behaviour change technique mapping process identified nine techniques used weekly and a total of 22 techniques used over the entire 4 week program curriculum.This is the first Australian study to link the contribution of behaviour change techniques to food literacy and dietary behaviour change in an established effective food literacy program. Knowing the behaviour change techniques associated with effective programs will facilitate replication of effective interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indoor air pollution (IAP) resulting from firewood used as cooking fuel is related to the respiratory problems and can lead to the reduction in human capital formation. Using data from the fourth Cameroonian survey of households carried out in 2014, we analyse if exposure to indoor air pollution resulting from the use of firewood provokes respiratory infections and if they have consequences on the education of children according to gender. Our results show that the use of firewood as the main fuel for cooking increases the risk of respiratory infection among girls (but not among boys) and these infections have a negative impact on education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensuring access to modern energy for all is a fundamental aim of Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG7). Whereas education is often considered important in supporting the energy transition, there is limited empirical evidence to confirm this causal relationship. Using microdata from the 2010 census, this study investigates the causal impact of education on the adoption of clean cooking fuels in rural China. To address the challenge of endogeneity, an instrumental variable (IV) approach was adopted, based on the enactment of compulsory schooling laws (CSLs) in China. Individuals' educational choices are driven by their exposure to these CSLs, which vary across cohorts and provincial regions. The results show that an additional year of schooling significantly reduces biomass use by 6.1% and increases the adoption of clean fuels by 5.9%. The positive impact of education is more pronounced in less developed regions. These findings suggest that strengthening education can be a crucial policy tool for mitigating air pollution, particularly in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper focuses on didactic challenges related to food diversity teaching in Home Economics Education in Danish secondary school, based on a recently concluded Home Economics Education research project in Denmark (Wistoft et al., 2022). The methodology is a mixed methods design, including a survey among Home Economics teachers (N=380) as well as personal teacher interviews, geographically dispersed (N=24). The theoretical framework for the analysis presented includes theory of teacher profiles (Carlsen, 2017), systems theory (Luhmann, 1995), learning expectations relating to achievement (Hattie, 2009), and taste didactics and competencies (Wistoft & Qvortrup, 2019, 2021). There are four main findings: A) The empirical research shows that food diversity is included by some teachers but rejected by others, who believe that the national food culture is the right approach to teaching food knowledge. B) It is necessary to focus on teaching food diversity in Home Economics cooking classes in relation to the increasing diversification of food, taste, and meals in society, because, in a Danish context, and probably in many other countries, food diversity perspectives are often neglected or only treated implicitly by the teachers. C) Food diversity teaching in Home Economics cooking classes needs to include the processes of making sense of food. D) Food diversity teaching includes learning processes concerning cultural, religious, and ideological or attitudinal differences in taste and meal communities. The paper concludes with some general didactic recommendations for teaching and learning about cultural food diversity in Home Economics Education in school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current observational study aims to determine the extent to which main food safety principles are addressed in Slovenian cooking shows and whether the type of main actor or television channel significantly impacts adherence to good hygiene practices. In general, our results show that food handling presented to the audience in Slovenian TV cooking shows often deviates from the main food safety recommendations. A comparison between amateur and professional chefs has shown notable but statistically insignificant differences. While in the area of personal hygiene, more deviations were found among amateur than among professional chefs (p = 0.011), we can observe the opposite in the area of preparation practices, albeit with insignificant difference (p = 0.884). The current study provides further evidence that there is a large gap between what viewers see and what they should have seen in television cooking shows from a food safety perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to contribute to the understanding of food for health as educational content in Home and Consumer Studies (HCS), specifically targeting three educational functions: (i) qualification, (ii) socialization, and (iii) subjectification. Data came from a comprehensive case study, where one school class and two HCS teachers were followed during one school year. Fourteen classroom observations and eight teacher interviews were included. It is shown how qualification functions comprise nutrition knowledge and cooking skills, how socialization functions entail, e.g., dichotomous values of food as "good" or "bad," and how conscious consumers who take personal responsibility for themselves and the environment become promoted subjects. Taken together, the results illustrate how educational content can have consequences beyond those intended. Based on the results, an argument is made about the relevance for HCS teachers to critically reflect on their teaching and its potential educational consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on nursing and medical students, assessing their knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding food safety. This non‐random cross‐sectional study was conducted between October and December 2022, with 1100 students (721 nursing and 379 medical) completing self‐administered questionnaires. 949 (86.3%) of the respondents were female and 151 (13.7%) were male (mean age 20.90 ± 1.74). Nursing students outperformed medical students in food safety KAP scores (19.45 ± 3.19 vs. 19.13 ± 3.36), (10.61 ± 1.52 vs. 10.27 ± 1.80), and (46.96 ± 6.48 vs. 42.87 ± 6.49), with significant differences in food safety attitudes and practices (p < 0.05), as well as knowledge regarding personal hygiene, food preparation, cooking, foodborne pathogens, and cross‐contamination (p < 0.05). Multivariate stepwise linear regression analysis revealed predictors of food safety knowledge, including age, residence, academic year, personal food poisoning experience, and familiarity with food safety authority (p < 0.05). Similarly, institutional context, gender, income, residential status, academic year, personal cooking habit, father's education level, and mother's education level had a substantial impact on the attitudes of students. Predictors of safe food handling practices encompassed institutional context, age, gender, family monthly income, residential status, academic year, father's education level, personal food poisoning experience, and familiarity with food safety authority (p < 0.05). These findings highlighted the need for targeted educational interventions to improve food safety KAP among nursing and medical students considering their forthcoming responsibilities as carers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many professions have emerged from the early ages to the present day. In this context, cooking is an ancient profession that has been done by people since ancient times. Especially in recent years, the importance of this profession has increased considerably and more preferred. People usually consider the image of that profession when choosing a profession. Because people's choosing a profession that is compatible with their personal characteristics will increase the efficiency of that profession. In this context, the value and image of a profession are the biggest factors in choosing the profession. When the literature is scanned, it is seen that image determination studies are mainly carried out on nursing and teaching professions. However, it is seen that there are not enough studies on the image of the culinary profession. The aim of this study is in online environment to measure the perceptions of the students who receive non-formal gastronomy education about the culinary profession. In order to achieve this aim, "Image Scale of Culinary Profession" has been developed. This scale consists of 14 items and 4 dimensions. These factors are; It was named as Professional Characteristics (5 items), Personal Characteristics (3 items), Competence (3 items) and Behavioral Characteristics (3 items). The average score that can be obtained from the test is 2.5, the top score is 5, and the base score is 1. The created questionnaire was applied to 391 participants who received gastronomy training in in online environment private education institutions. These data were analysed with SPSS and AMOS programs and subjected to validity and reliability tests. Then t-test was applied to the data. As a result of the test, very significant and positive results were obtained regarding the image of the culinary profession. In addition, it was determined that the image perception of the culinary profession differed according to the demographic characteristics of the students. In this context, it was concluded that the score of the Professional Traits dimension was 4.16, the Personal Traits score was 4.46, the Competencies score was 4.43, and the behavioral traits score was 4.15. The overall score average was found to be 4.28. The results show that the culinary profession has a very positive image for students who receive non-formal gastronomy education. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) is a widely implemented 12-month behavioural weight loss programme for individuals with prediabetes. The DPP covers nutrition but does not explicitly incorporate cooking skills education. The objective of the current study is to describe food and cooking skills (FACS) and strategies of recent DPP participants. Design: Photo-elicitation in-depth interviews were conducted from June to August, 2021. Setting: Baltimore, MD, USA. Participants: Thirteen Black women who participated in DPP. Results: The DPP curriculum influenced participants' healthy cooking practices. Many participants reported shifting from frying foods to air-frying and baking foods to promote healthier cooking and more efficient meal preparation. Participants also reported that their participation in DPP made them more mindful of consuming fruits and vegetables and avoiding foods high in carbohydrates, fats, sugars and Na. With respect to food skills, participants reported that they were more attentive to reading labels and packaging on foods and assessing the quality of ingredients when grocery shopping. Conclusions: Overall, participants reported changing their food preferences, shopping practices and cooking strategies to promote healthier eating after completing the DPP. Incorporating hands-on cooking skills and practices into the DPP curriculum may support sustained behaviour change to manage prediabetes and prevent development of type 2 diabetes among participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate changes in culinary practices associated with the arrival of farming, we analysed the organic residues of over 1,000 pottery vessels from hunter-gatherer-fisher and early agricultural sites across Northern Europe from the Lower Rhine Basin to the Northeastern Baltic. Here, pottery was widely used by hunter-gatherer-fishers prior to the introduction of domesticated animals and plants. Overall, there was surprising continuity in the way that hunter-gatherer-fishers and farmers used pottery. Both aquatic products and wild plants remained prevalent, a pattern repeated consistently across the study area. We argue that the rapid adaptation of farming communities to exploit coastal and lagoonal resources facilitated their northerly expansion, and in some cases, hunting, gathering, and fishing became the most dominant subsistence strategy. Nevertheless, dairy products frequently appear in pottery associated with the earliest farming groups often mixed with wild plants and fish. Interestingly, we also find compelling evidence of dairy products in hunter-gatherer-fisher Ertebølle pottery, which predates the arrival of domesticated animals. We propose that Ertebølle hunter-gatherer-fishers frequently acquired dairy products through exchange with adjacent farming communities prior to the transition. The continuity observed in pottery use across the transition to farming contrasts with the analysis of human remains which shows substantial demographic change through ancient DNA and, in some cases, a reduction in marine consumption through stable isotope analysis. We postulate that farmers acquired the knowledge and skills they needed to succeed from local hunter-gatherer-fishers but without substantial admixture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An interview with Laura, a 29-year-old woman from Cabana, Meira, sharing her journey from studying culinary arts in the city to discovering her true passion for forestry and becoming a motosaw operator, forest worker, farmer, and agriculturalist, is presented. Topics include her unexpected entry into forestry, the demand for motosaw operators, the physical requirements for the job, and her experiences as a woman in a predominantly male environment.

Many young adults mistakenly perceive that they have good food safety knowledge and are unlikely to experience foodborne illness. Young women's food skills are of particular importance because women are responsible for most food-related tasks in the home and many children learn food skills from their mothers. This descriptive qualitative study explored young women's perceptions of food skills in three domains: food selection and planning, food preparation, and food safety and storage. Through individual interviews, 30 young women aged 17 to 30 years answered the following three key research questions: (i) What do food skills mean to you? (ii) How did you learn them? and (iii) In what areas are you most and least confident? Few participants mentioned food safety in their top-of-mind definition of food skills. More than half were least confident in the domain of food safety and storage. Fear prompted avoidance of cooking meat -- even by those who were not vegan or vegetarian. Food skill interventions or curricula should emphasize food safety and storage so that young adults can reap the dietary and financial benefits of preparing all types of food. Consistent with others' recommendations, the two most important food safety topics for educating young adults should be (i) cross-contamination and sanitation procedures and (ii) safe times and temperatures for cooking or storing food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to examine a scale to measure the culinary experience of tourists through the case of Hue cuisine in Vietnam. It could help address the issue of measurement inconsistency in culinary experience research. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with 20 domestic tourists and then through surveys with 433 tourists. Using factor analysis methods, the research revealed that tourists' culinary experience was measured by a second-order scale encompassing three interrelated dimensions. They included educational experience, escapist experience, and entersthetic experience. This culinary experience scale was found to be reliable, convergent, discriminant, and nomologically valid. The newly developed scale of culinary experience could be utilized in similar tourism contexts where the local food is unique and tasty. In addition, the research enhances tourism professionals' understanding of the significance of tourists' culinary experience. Consequently, they could improve tourists' experiences through a range of activities, such as telling stories about the local food, creating food check-in venues, and organizing local food games or contests. In terms of theoretical contribution, this research enhances the understanding of customer experience in the tourism context by validating a new second-order scale of culinary experience. The research also provides empirical evidence to demonstrate the multi-dimensional, collective, and changing nature of tourists' culinary experience, using the Experience Economy perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Poor diet, including inadequate vegetable intake, is a leading risk factor for noncommunicable disease. Culinary and nutrition education provided to trainee and practising health and education professionals is an emerging strategy to promote improved dietary intake, including vegetable consumption. We evaluated the impact and feasibility of an online culinary medicine and nutrition (CM/CN) short course for health, education and vegetable industry professionals. The course aimed to improve participants' skills and confidence to prepare vegetables, knowledge of evidence‐based nutrition information and recommendations for improving vegetable consumption and diet quality. Methods: A pre–post study consisting of two separate groups participating in two course rounds recruited practising professionals (n = 30) working in health; community, adult and/or culinary education; and the vegetable industry. Evaluation assessed diet quality, vegetable consumption barriers, cooking and food skill confidence, nutrition knowledge and process measures. Results: Seventeen participants (68%) completed the programme. Pre‐ to postintervention statistically significant increases in vegetables (M 1.3, SD 2.2), fruit (M 1.6, SD 3.1), and breads and cereal (M 1.1, SD 1.7) intakes were observed. Statistically significant increases and large effect sizes for mean food skill confidence scores (M 8.9, SD 15.4, Cohen's d 0.56) and nutrition knowledge scores (M 6.2, SD 15.4, Cohen's d 0.83) were also observed pre‐ to postintervention. Conclusions: The short online course was feasible and improved diet quality, food skill confidence and nutrition knowledge. Online CM/CN education for practising professionals represents a promising area of research. Future research involving a larger study sample and a more rigorous study design such as a randomised control trial is warranted. Key points: The online asynchronous course was feasible to run and well received by health, education and vegetable industry professionals.After completing the 5‐week online culinary nutrition course, participants had increased vegetable intake, bread and cereal intake, food skill confidence and nutrition knowledge.Findings indicate larger studies, with randomised control trial design, and that examine the impact on professionals' patients, clients and students are warranted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The school subject home economics (HE) provides education on food, meals, and sustainability. Drawing on observations and interviews with eight Swedish HE teachers during 2018, this paper conceptualizes HE as an ambiguous perceived space between the conceived space of state-controlled learning goals and the lived space of a traditional Swedish, feminine, middle-class home. The subject's focus on cooking and housework lowered its status and marginalized it from the rest of the school. It seemed in constant threat of neglect and dissipation, which together with the chaotic nature of student cooking gave rise to a need for order and control. This extended to norms surrounding food, cooking, and eating that blurred the line between knowledge content and value judgments. Based on these findings, I suggest that HE is permeated not only by the social, ecological, and economic sustainability perspectives of the syllabus but also a fourth – cultural sustainability – which is not explicitly defined but rather underpins the subject in the form of a hidden curriculum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural culinary tourism is a growing sector in European tourism and is a key resource for rural development, in particular in Southern Europe. The boom of the sector that followed the COVID-19 pandemic, however, poses important questions concerning the actual capacity of local actors to grasp this opportunity. The paper investigates the main trends in rural tourism in Southern Europe and the specific educational needs entrepreneurs express based on extensive research conducted in seven Southern European countries (France, Italy, Greece, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey) within the Erasmus + project "The European Network for the Promotion of Culinary and Proximity Tourism in Rural Areas" in 2022. Specifically, the research was conducted through focus group discussions with professionals and stakeholders of the project carried out in the target countries involving 76 respondents. Based on the data collected, this paper indicates a way forward for the new gastronomes to understand this sector and invest their professionality in it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]