Module 06-Maura McGonigal

The summer after my sophomore year in college, I studied abroad. I studied photography and architecture in Rome, Italy for six weeks. During the six weeks I spent in Rome, I learned about other cultures and social norms, which became an integral part of my daily life. The most drastic change in my lifestyle during this time was my food intake. Prior to this trip, I consumed meat every night for dinner. The Italian diet mainly consists of pasta, pizza, cheese, and bread. Throughout the six weeks I spent in Italy, I ate meat twice. Meat was available, however, it was not the norm to order meat dishes. Meat options also differed from the United States. In Italy, meat options included cured meats with cheeses or cured meats in pizza or pasta. Meat dishes also double or tripled the price of pasta dishes. I only went to two restaurants where I saw a steak available on the menu. This was a drastic change to my diet that was a direct result of the Italian social norms.

As we learned in this module, meat consumption in the United States is of great concern. Meat consumption draws on a variety of social issues including animal cruelty, unsustainable agriculture, antibiotic resistance, and greenhouse gas emissions. The Meatrix video displayed the reality of factory farms highlighting animal treatment and many other social issues. In Italy, it is socially normal to consume less meat than it is in the United States. When I lived in Italy, I ate less meat than I did previously in the United States. The choice to consume less meat improves the social issues of greenhouse gas emissions and sustainable agriculture. Livestock, specifically cows, consume a large portion of the world’s supply of corn. The depletion of the corn supply is contributing to social famine in third world countries. Cows also produce a significant amount of greenhouse gases, specifically methane. By consuming less meat, the greenhouse gas emission and social famine issues are decreased. I think that the American culture could learn from the Italian social norms and decrease their meat consumption and thereby improve social issues with which we currently struggle.

MO6MauraMcGonigal

3 thoughts on “Module 06-Maura McGonigal

  1. Hello Maura,
    Your post caught my attention the minute I read “studied abroad”. First off I want to say that experience must have been amazing. Anyways I could relate to some of what you mentioned in your blog post because I am Hispanic and most of my meals are homemade meals. Once I attended the college I began to consume fast food or campus food. I think that it is best we watch what we consume, but adjusting to new foods we are not used to can sometimes be difficult.
    If you get an opportunity check out my blog: http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/03/02/food-choice-social-norms/?preview_id=44940&preview_nonce=3e94424fbb&post_format=standard&preview=true

  2. Hi Maura! I’m Eunice Lee majoring in Early Childhood Education. Your blog entry caught my attention because I could relate my experience to yours. I also had to change my food choices because of different cultural norms. I’m from South Korea and we tend to eat foods that have low sugar and fats but when I came to Penn state I began to consume foods that have high sugar and fats. Mainly because I ate the campus food! Also, I have to say it would have been really hard for me if I had to reduce the amount of meat I have! Moreover, I liked how you concluded saying that we should learn from the Italian social norm!
    Thank you for sharing and this is my blog entry :
    http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/03/01/module-6-4/

  3. Hey Maura! My name is Caren, feel free to check out my blog:
    http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/02/29/module-6/#comments

    In my blog, I wrote about the influence my father has over the type of food my family purchases. He works with food regulations and as a result, he constantly lectures my family on the importance of purchasing small family run farm products versus factory farm foods. I found your blog interesting because it was fascinating to see the differences between different cultures and their values. The fact that Italy doesn’t eat as much meats as the US means that their society probably doesn’t have the same issues we go through such as factory farms, corn supplies, animal treatment, and excess greenhouse gases.

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