INTRODUCTORY TEXT

LESSON 11

Food and Meals (National Cuisine)

The belly rules the mind.

Who goes to bed without eating, will be up all night.

A coffee is good with three S: sitting, scalding, scrounging.

The way you cut your meat reflects the way you live.

Worries go down better with soup.

Rice is born in water and must die in wine.

Life is an onion and one cries while peeling it.

INTRODUCTORY TEXT

Notes to the text:

brand of food – торгові марки (знаки)

bewildering assortment – асортимент, що вражає

canned food – консервована їжа

to purchase – робити покупки

pancakes – млинці

сonsequently – відповідно, отже

low-fat dairy – молочні продукти з низьким вмістом жиру

lean meat – пісне, нежирне м’ясо

consumption – вживання

Europeans have a wide assortment of foods to choose. Meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, nuts, cereals from various parts of the world are available throughout the country during any season of the year. Frequently, the problem for the consumer is not the lack of variety of brands of food, but rather the bewildering assortment from which one must choose. In addition, the consumer can choose from foods that are fresh, frozen, canned and cooked or uncooked. Currently, virtually all food stores have available a wide array of frozen foods especially prepared to be heated or cooked in a microwave oven.

The microwave oven has revolutionized the home preparation of meals. It, along with the supermarket, where virtually any kind of foods are available, make the preparation of food the most time-efficient in the world. A family can make only one trip a week to the supermarket to purchase its food needs for an entire week. Before the turn of the century Europeans have access to computer-based shopping enabling them to make their buying decisions at home and picking up their purchases at the store or having them delivered to their homes.

Since the 1990s fast-food and take-out restaurants have had a phenomenal proliferation throughout the world. The first fast-food chains like McDonalds, Potato Hut which offer sandwiches, hamburgers, French-fried potatoes, hot dogs, pizzas, pancakes, chili and fried chicken, have been joined by other chains some of which offer Mexican, Chinese and other ethnic foods. The cost of the food in such restaurants is frequently cheaper than if one were to prepare similar food in one's kitchen. Consequently, an entire family may frequently go to eat at fast food places for convenience and economy.

A more recent development in the European food industry has been the demand for healthier foods. The food industry has made available a wide variety of low-fat dairy and meat products. Animals are now being scientifically bred to produce lean meat. Even low fatcheeses and creams are being produced. Vegetable, fruit and cereal consumption is increasing. A second demand is for foods grown and produced free fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides. This has led to the development of ‘organic food’ industry. Of course, the cost of organic foods is substantially higher than for nonorganic food. The market for organic food has nevertheless been expanding.