Discover What People Eat Around The World In Photos

150 shares Think you know what other people eat around the world? Take a look at how much and how little the rest of the world eats compared to your country. You might be surprised! Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio, a husband and wife team from California, travelled to 24 countries around the world photographing

By Annie André ⦿ updated November 12 
photos of what people eat in one week around the world
photos of what people eat in one week around the world
Think you know what other people eat around the world? Take a look at how much and how little the rest of the world eats compared to your country. You might be surprised!

Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio, a husband and wife team from California, travelled to 24 countries around the world photographing and documenting what 30 families eat in one week.

This clever couple put their findings in a book called Hungry Planet: What The World Eats.

Each of the families profiled in the book includes detailed interviews, a description of their weekly food purchases, their favourite foods and photos of them in food markets and at home surrounded by a week’s worth of groceries and more.

It’s a far cry from what you might order at a 3 star Micheline restaurant in Paris which can cost up to $1,000

I’ve pulled together a selection of those images from the book below. 

What people eat in one week around the world (in photos)

 

Hungry Planet: what people eat around the world in 1 week.

North America

United States- North Carolina

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: USA

Food Cost 1 week: $341.98
Favourite food: spaghetti, potatoes, chicken with sesame seeds

Canada- Nunavut Territory

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Canada

Food expenditure for one week: US$345
Favourite Foods: narwhal, polar bear, extra cheese stuffed crust pizza, watermelon

Central America

Mexico-Cuernavaca

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Mexico

Food Cost 1 week:1 862.78 Mexican pesos or $189.09
Favourite food: pizza, crab, pasta, chicken

Lots and lots of fruits but check out all the coke on the back table. Holy coke-a-moly!

South America

Ecuador- Tingo:

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Ecuador

Food Cost 1 week: $31.55
Family recipe: Potato soup with cabbage

*Humbling, notice all the bananas or Plantaines and bags of grain and potatoes and the lack of processed stuff.

Europe

United Kingdom: Cllingbourne Ducis

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Uk

Food Cost 1 week: 155.54 British Pounds or $253.15
Favourite foods: avocado, mayonnaise sandwich, prawn cocktail, chocolate fudge cake with cream

Not many vegetables or fruits looks mostly processed, and they said one of their favourite foods is mayonnaise sandwich. Please tell me that’s a pseudonym for something else.

Germany: Bargteheide

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Germany

Food Cost 1 week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07
Favourite foods: fried potatoes with onions, bacon and herring, fried noodles with eggs and cheese, pizza, vanilla pudding

I see lots of leafy greens along with beer and wine. Where are the sausages and currywurst?

France: Montreuil

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: France

Food expenditure for one week: 315.17 euros or $419.95
Favourite Foods: Delphine Le Moine’s Apricot Tarts, pasta carbonara, Thai food

Notice the Nutella way in the back. No milk. Lots of yogurt and cheese but seriously, where are the baguettes? I do not know one French person who does not eat baguettes at least once a week. Makes me wonder.

Africa

Africa: Chad

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Africa

Food Cost 1 week: 685 CFA francs, or $1.23
Favourite foods: soup with fresh sheep meat

I had to stare at this photo for a very long time. I feel humbled by this image. Is that all the water they drink in one week between all of them? I see the grains and maybe rice, but they have no fruits veggies? Is this really enough to sustain them, or is it that we ( the rest of the world) overeat?

Egypt: Cairo

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Egypt

Food Cost 1 week: 387.85 Egyptian pounds, or $68.53
Family recipe: Okra and mutton

Wow, this looks amazingly good and healthy. Lots of veggies and fruits and hardly any carbs at all. 

Australia: Riverview

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Australia

Food Cost 1 week: 481 Australian dollars, or $376

Family Recipe: Marge Brown’s Quandong (an Australian peach) Pie, Yoghurt

Lots of water. A good mix of meat, beans and fruit. Still seems like a lot of processed food in the back on top of the stove. Where is the Vegemite?

Asia

China: Beiijing

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: China

Food Cost 1 week: 1 233.76 yuan, or $155.06
Favourite foods: fried shredded pork with sweet and sour sauce

What’s interesting is that this family has the least amount of vegetables are on the table, although they do consume lots of fruits.

Japan: Kodaira

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Japan

Food Cost 1 week: 37,699 Yen or $317.25
Favourite foods: sashimi, fruit, cake, potato chips

Check out all the pre-packaged foods on the floor. Notice very little red meat and chicken. Mostly fish.

South Asia:

Bhutan:  Shingkhey Village

What People Eat In One Week Around The World: Bhutan

Food Cost 1 week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03
Family recipe: Mushroom, cheese and pork

Lots of greens, fruits and look at that big bag probably filled with rice.

Conclusion:

What people eat around the world varies from family to family, but there is something to be said about these eye-opening photos.

The western world, in general, eats a lot of processed foods — cereals, bread, chips, sodas etc.

Many families don’t eat enough greens, vegetables or fruits. Even parts of Asia seemed to consume a large amount of processed foods.

In other countries where these processed foods are perhaps less readily available, or maybe just because of cultural reasons, more fresh produce is eaten like in South East Asia, Egypt and Africa.

Pick up a copy of the whole book at Amazon loaded with many more interesting photos and detailed interviews. This is a great book to share with the kids too. 

Hungry Planet: What The World Eats
$24.99 $18.49

Cultural geographers Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio visited twenty-five families in twenty-one countries to create this fascinating look at what people around the world eat in a single week. Each family's profile features Full-color photographs of the family posing with the food consumed in a week, food cost and quantity. A world map where each family lives. Facts about that country, including population, currency, average income, and more.

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11/30/2023 04:56 pm GMT

Photos: PETER MENZEL/BARCROFT MEDIA

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Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a 'petite commission' at no extra cost to you if you make a purchase through my links. It helps me buy more wine and cheese. Please read my disclosure for more info.

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Annie André

Annie André

About the author

I'm Annie André, a bilingual North American with Thai and French Canadian roots. I've lived in France since 2011. When I'm not eating cheese, drinking wine or hanging out with my husband and children, I write articles on my personal blog annieandre.com for intellectually curious people interested in all things France: Life in France, travel to France, French culture, French language, travel and more.

 

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