What A Week Of Groceries Looks Like Around The World

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  • _noob_
    _noob_ Posts: 3,306 Member
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    on the time.com website, there is another american family:
    11.jpg
    (from: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373740,00.html)

    puts the other one in a bit more perspective.

    This doesn't look like a particularly recent photo.

    meh, could just be from the midwest...
  • kitsa77
    kitsa77 Posts: 9 Member
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    I saw this at a BodyWorlds exhibit about a year ago, although the Canadian picture was different. This picture seems more realistic. The picture they had I don't think was a true image of the average Canadian's diet.

    What did the Canadian pic at BodyWorld look like?

    I tried to find the picture and couldn't. Basically they didn't have any prepackaged stuff, or very little of it at all. I remember the description underneath reading that the Canadian family lived in a self-built straw bale home if that gives you an idea. Probably not the average Canadian family.

    I did find this - they list the prices each family paid.
    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2319825/The-great-global-food-gap-Families-world-photographed-weekly-shopping-reveal-cost-ranges-3-20-320.html
  • Shan790
    Shan790 Posts: 280 Member
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    I love this thread. Do you think though that America would be healthier if the prices of produce would go down? I mean when I look at my grocery bill the most expensive things on it are the produce. I don't tend to buy a lot of process foods but when I do they are a lot cheaper then produce by far.

    Agreed. I'm not working right now and have been trying to lower the food bill. There are all kinds of coupons for junk food and sales. I'm lucky enough to live near a Mennonite community and have access to lots of produce for cheap. But it's for sure not as convenient as the processed stuff.
  • salladeve
    salladeve Posts: 1,053 Member
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    Nah, This is too generalized, and too easy to explain away the obesity epidemic in this country. There are many families that eat only home cooked meals, but are still overweight, because they do not understand how to cook and eat healthy.
  • TeachTheGirl
    TeachTheGirl Posts: 2,091 Member
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    I love this thread. Do you think though that America would be healthier if the prices of produce would go down?

    Yes.

    When I can get a whole bunch of bananas for the price of one small apple, something seems off.

    That brings another point, though. It would be nice to know what the price equivalent is for each of these images. Also more information about the families, because the 'average' family would vary from country to country. A lot of the US lives below the poverty line.
  • skinnywithin
    skinnywithin Posts: 1,392 Member
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    I see corn flakes seem to be a staple in most homes. Oh and Coke.
  • highmaintnance
    highmaintnance Posts: 215 Member
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    Funny how only the Germans own up to drinking alcohol. I would expect some wine in an Italian household, and more than one bottle in the French one...

    Great thread btw :-)


    My thought was, with all that alcohol why do they look so angry?
  • 1shauna1
    1shauna1 Posts: 993 Member
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    Very interesting, to see where the most processed foods are. I think I could live in Germany (all that beer and wine! lol)....I'm in Canada (actually seems fairly typical to me).
  • WeepingAngel81
    WeepingAngel81 Posts: 2,232 Member
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    on the time.com website, there is another american family:
    11.jpg
    (from: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373740,00.html)

    puts the other one in a bit more perspective.

    This doesn't look like a particularly recent photo.

    meh, could just be from the midwest...

    Uh....Nebraska girl here lol! This is not what any mid west family I've seen around here looking like.

    Seriously though, while placement and lighting do play a role in getting the lookers attention, it still doesn't change the fact that here in the states pre packaged and processed foods are played up. Someone pointed out that America had meat packaged while other countries didn't. Fresh meat is healthier than prepackaged. Yes, the chips are stacked up high, but even if they weren't there would still be all of those chips.
    My family doesn't eat like that. It's just me and 2 young kids. I couldn't imagine eating as much as the American family in the photo. It does take some effort to prepare meals. There would need to be a huge shift in the American lifestyle all around in order to eat like other countries. I know with my kids, I am constantly on the go...softball, swim lessons, pampered chef, full time job, play dates, and so on. I have to make an effort to set aside time to prep for meals in advance. Not everyone has the time or the energy for that which makes convience food so appealing.
  • rosemaryhon
    rosemaryhon Posts: 507 Member
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    Funny how only the Germans own up to drinking alcohol. I would expect some wine in an Italian household, and more than one bottle in the French one...

    Great thread btw :-)


    My thought was, with all that alcohol why do they look so angry?

    I realize this was probably a joke, but truth is in my experience, alcohol often does make people angry ~ such as angry drunks and cranky with hangovers.

    Just sayin' ;)
  • notenoughspeed
    notenoughspeed Posts: 290 Member
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    Holy moly! Look at all that soda in the Mexico picture. Notice the extra weight as well.
  • GamerLady
    GamerLady Posts: 359 Member
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    Shocking, that's a lot of food for one week, of course there's only 3 of us here at our home. A lot of countries had a nice variety of grains/beans/meats/vegetables/fruits. Looking at the USA pic was quite sad and disgusting really.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 48,670 Member
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    Be interested to see what they eat in Polynesia.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
  • berriboobear
    berriboobear Posts: 524 Member
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    Interesting to see the comparisons in types of food and quantity. Of course, not all families will be the same, but thanks for posting!
  • morkiemama
    morkiemama Posts: 894 Member
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    Bump to read later. :)
  • dltaylorii
    dltaylorii Posts: 132
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    You all know that everyone was thinking that the pizza looked really good. :laugh:

    Bleh. I prefer my pizza to look like this:

    ginos_pizza_chicago-0953.jpg

    or this:

    vespaMAG.jpg
  • JUDDDing
    JUDDDing Posts: 1,367 Member
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    on the time.com website, there is another american family:
    11.jpg
    (from: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373740,00.html)

    puts the other one in a bit more perspective.

    This doesn't look like a particularly recent photo.

    meh, could just be from the midwest...

    Uh....Nebraska girl here lol! This is not what any mid west family I've seen around here looking like.

    Maybe they meant Indiana or someplace?

    Clearly not enough meat for Nebraska.

    And that's like a year's worth of bagels.
  • Carnivor0us
    Carnivor0us Posts: 1,752 Member
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    on the time.com website, there is another american family:
    11.jpg
    (from: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373740,00.html)

    puts the other one in a bit more perspective.

    This doesn't look like a particularly recent photo.

    meh, could just be from the midwest...

    Uh....Nebraska girl here lol! This is not what any mid west family I've seen around here looking like.

    Maybe they meant Indiana or someplace?

    Clearly not enough meat for Nebraska.

    And that's like a year's worth of bagels.

    It's also a 20 year old picture.
  • sweetfluffy
    sweetfluffy Posts: 24 Member
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    wow ! awesome topic dear ...
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
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    I'm not defending the average American diet because I know that it is horrific, but a lot of the impact of these photos is in how things are displayed. For example, every family other than the US family has their meat on platters, while the US family's is in packages, giving it a "less healthy" appearance. They also have the potato chips propped up tall so that's the first thing you notice. And as somebody else pointed out, the bright colored packaging gives the appearance that there is more "junk" food in the picture. There are prepackaged foods in most of these photos. And just about every family other than those in Africa have some form of soda. Also, there are frozen pizzas in at least four other pictures, yet the American family is proudly displaying their delivery pizzas front and center. Is delivery worse than frozen? I don't know.

    I don't think it's the packaged fresh meat that gives the Americans an unhealthy appearance... Yes, others have processed foods in their photographs, but it's the sheer quantity of the American photograph that is shocking. I'm actually surprised by the Canadian photo - I appreciate the bagged milk and Liberte yogurt, but I would have expected it to be a bit more similar to the American photo. But again, these are just generalizations and it all depends on the individual family, socioeconomics, etc.

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