Sunday, April 4, 2010

See How They Eat

The Melander family of Bargteheide, GERMANY. Weekly food expenditure = 375.39 Euros (USD500.07)

The Revis family of North Carolina, USA. Weekly food expenditure = USD341.98

The Manzo family of Sicily, ITALY. Weekly food expenditure = 214.36 Euros (USD260.11)


The Casales family of Cuernavaca, MEXICO. Weekly food expenditure = 1862.78 Mexican pesos (USD189.09)


The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna, POLAND. Weekly food expenditure = 582.48 Zlotys (USD151.27)


The Ahmed family of Cairo, EGYPT. Weekly food expenditure = 387.85 Egyptian Pounds (USD68.53)


The Ayme family of Tingo, ECUADOR. Weekly food expenditure = USD31.55


The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village, BHUTAN. Weekly food expenditure = 22493 ngultrum (USD5.03)



The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp, CHAD. Weekly food expenditure = 685 CFA Francs (USD1.23)



NOTE: Untuk renungan bersama. I do not know the origin of the above (it was e-mailed to me by Pak Abu who received it from his MCKK classmates' site). But if by publishing this infringes some copyright somewhere, please let me know so I can take it off pronto. Thank you.

17 comments:

NanaDJ said...

Interesting! But what disparity - the poor family from Chad, having to make do with so little. And you see the German, American, Mexican etc having so much to eat. Just look at the number of coke bottles!

Kak Teh said...

Puteri, no matter where this comes from, it serves to remind us of the disparity and for us to be thankful for what's on our table. Kekadang tu dah penuh meja pun dok tak cukup lagi.

لف توف™ said...

I believe these photos come from the book "Hungry Planet: What the World Eats" by Peter Menzel and Faith D'Aluisio. The "picture essay" had been in circulation for quite sometime.

Kama At-Tarawis said...

Nana - Coke is so unhealthy but alas, I succumb to it sometimes..

Kak Teh - Tis so true, especially during the fasting month when we tend to buy/eat mopre than necessary.

Lap - Tq for the info.

mekyam said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
mekyam said...

been in the public domain for a while, princess. so shd be okay.

it's a nice one for sharing! :D

mekyam said...

just want to say that comparison by food expenditure is artificial.

what is insteresting is to note the amount of fresh food compared to prepared food, the different kinds of diet favoured, the numbers in the family that are being fed, the probable cost of food, the availability of fresh foods and the propensity to produce them in different parts of the world, etc2.

but nothing like visual effects to nudge awareness and give us pause, ya. this neat photo essay is definitely a very creative way to highlight a disparity that most already know but seldom pay attention to.

Kama At-Tarawis said...

Mekyam - ah so deska. it does seem the more affluent people are, the less fresh foods they consume..

Sherry said...

This is the first time I am seeing this.

It's a good reminder for things that we take for granted every day. And how we should be thankful for our abundance.

KG said...

Sebab tu kalau you dtg makan kat rumah i it's just one lauk, one sayur and maybe ikan goreng or telur dadar...i insaf kalau lau jaln in sik, kedah, ada lagi rumah yg tak dak lampu and ayarq and dinding rumah pakai buluh ketuk!

mekyam said...

princess and friends,

go here: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1626519_1373664,00.html

the essay is called "what the world eats" [pt 1]. there are 16 pictures in all in the whole photo-essay.

so true what you said, princess. the diet of the first world is more processed. and their fresh foods, even if they look more wholesome, most are probably genetically altered and not organically grown.

so who is to say who are actually eating "better" kan? the diet of the more affluent people, in the long run, probably caused many of their illnesses.

on top of that, the industries that produce and support the production of those foods are very much to be blamed for the degreening of the earth.

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Hi Puteri,

Should be interesting to get one of a typical Malaysian family; nasi lemak, mee goreng, roti prata, nasi biryaini,chicken rice, teh tariks, maggi mee, etc...; RM$400/week???...hahaha. Somehow my buddy food connoisseur Oldstock comes to mind as the perfect candidate for such an exercise :))

Cheers,
Tommy

Unknown said...

..or a typical Orang Asli family deep in southern Kelantan jungle..petai, ubikayu, pucuk-pucuk, boiled fish..and sometimes grilled mammals, all self-harvested or trapped..dessert whatever fruits in seasons..rm0 perweek..:)

Tommy Yewfigure said...

Tumpang lalu Puteri,

Now now Pakmat don't be cheeky. If our friend oldstock did what u suggested, the time/hours involved will cost him RM1000/week at least..hahaha....

Kama At-Tarawis said...

sherry - ditto that.

KG - sounds like mealtime at my late grandma's; one soup dish (lauk berkuah), one vegetable dish, sambal belacan & ulam2 and perhaps telur masin rebus or acar. nikmat sentiasa.

Mekyam - tq for the link. dah checked it out. too much processed food boleh menyebabkan all kinds of modern ailments, that's my belief.

Tommy - waaa RM400/week? That's a lot la, Tommy! perhaps Oldstock can enlighten us eh..:)

Unknown said...

salam, lady..looks like my comment and Tommy's repartee to my comment are lost somewhere in cyberspace..tho it shows 15 in your post, there are only 13..so, here I go again..

..then, again, how about the Orang Asli deep in southern Kelantan's jungle..ubi kayu and pucuk-pucuk..petai, (self-harvested)little mammals grilled, boiled fish(trapped or blowpiped)..desserts whatever fruits in season..RM0.00 per week..:)

Kama At-Tarawis said...

Pakmat - Nothing could be healthier than orang asli's daily fare I guess, organic & fresh all the way, and costing next to nothing too. Have you ever seen an obese aborigine? there are plenty of obese malays, chinese though..

Tommy - indeed it would cost oldstock that much (or more!) in order to emulate the natives. kena cuti kerja nak masuk hutan woo.. that's time cost mah. ontop of that, oldstock has to learn to use the blowpipe..LOL..