What do you eat in one week? What does a typical American eat? What does a typical Brit eat? What does a family in the Darfur Refugee Camp in Chad eat? What do the people of the world eat? These are the questions that photographer Peter Menzel seeks to answer through his coffee table book of pictures and information: What the World Eats.
In 2005 Menzel took a photographic survey of the diets of families around the world, documenting what they purchased and ate in the course of a week. The results are visually striking – Menzel has cleverly remade the classic family portrait as an intimate archive of consumption and metabolism – and they also reveal a remarkable range in the quantity, quality, and variety of foods that families across the world take as quotidian.
Japan: The Ukita family of Kodaira City
Food expenditure for one week: 37,699 Yen or $317.25
Favorite foods: sashimi, fruit, cake, potato chips
Italy: The Manzo family of Sicily
Food expenditure for one week: 214.36 Euros or $260.11
Favorite foods: fish, pasta with ragu, hot dogs, frozen fish sticks
Chad: The Aboubakar family of Breidjing Camp
Food expenditure for one week: 685 CFA Francs or $1.23
Favorite foods: soup with fresh sheep meat
Kuwait: The Al Haggan family of Kuwait City
Food expenditure for one week: 63.63 dinar or $221.45 Family recipe: Chicken biryani with basmati rice
United States: The Revis family of North Carolina
Food expenditure for one week: $341.98
Favorite foods: spaghetti, potatoes, sesame chicken
Mexico: The Casales family of Cuernavaca
Food expenditure for one week: 1,862.78 Mexican Pesos or $189.09
Favorite foods: pizza, crab, pasta, chicken
China: The Dong family of Beijing
Food expenditure for one week: 1,233.76 Yuan or $155.06
Favorite foods: fried shredded pork with sweet and sour sauce
Poland: The Sobczynscy family of Konstancin-Jeziorna
Food expenditure for one week: 582.48 Zlotys or $151.27
Family recipe: Pig’s knuckles with carrots, celery and parsnips
Egypt: The Ahmed family of Cairo
Food expenditure for one week: 387.85 Egyptian Pounds or $68.53
Family recipe: Okra and mutton
Ecuador: The Ayme family of Tingo
Food expenditure for one week: $31.55
Family recipe: Potato soup with cabbage
United States: The Caven family of California
Food expenditure for one week: $159.18
Favorite foods: beef stew, berry yogurt sundae, clam chowder, ice cream
Mongolia: The Batsuuri family of Ulaanbaatar
Food expenditure for one week: 41,985.85 togrogs or $40.02
Family recipe: Mutton dumplings
Great Britain: The Bainton family of Cllingbourne Ducis
Food expenditure for one week: 155.54 British Pounds or $253.15
Favorite foods: avocado, mayonnaise sandwich, prawn cocktail, chocolate fudge cake with cream
Bhutan: The Namgay family of Shingkhey Village
Food expenditure for one week: 224.93 ngultrum or $5.03
Family recipe: Mushroom, cheese and pork
Germany: The Melander family of Bargteheide
Food expenditure for one week: 375.39 Euros or $500.07
Favorite foods: fried potatoes with onions, bacon and herring, fried noodles with eggs and cheese, pizza, vanilla pudding
Australia: The Browns of River View
Food expenditure for one week: 481.14 Australian dollars or US$376.45
Family Recipe: Marge Brown’s Quandong (an Australian peach) Pie, Yogurt
Guatemala: The Mendozas of Todos Santos
Food expenditure for one week: 573 Quetzales or $75.70
Family Recipe: Turkey Stew and Susana Perez Matias’s Sheep Soup
Luxembourg: The Kuttan-Kasses of Erpeldange
Food expenditure for one week: 347.64 Euros or $465.84
Favorite foods: Shrimp pizza, Chicken in wine sauce, Turkish kebabs
India: The Patkars of Ujjain
Food expenditure for one week: 1,636.25 rupees or $39.27
Family Recipe: Sangeeta Patkar’s Poha (Rice Flakes)
United States: The Fernandezes of Texas
Food expenditure for one week: $242.48
Favorite foods: Shrimp with Alfredo sauce, chicken mole, barbecue ribs, pizza
Mali: The Natomos of Kouakourou
Food expenditure for one week: 17,670 francs or $26.39
Family Recipe: Natomo Family Rice Dish
Canada: The Melansons of Iqaluit, Nunavut Territory
Food expenditure for one week: US$345
Favorite foods: narwhal, polar bear, extra cheese stuffed crust pizza, watermelon
France: The Le Moines of Montreuil
Food expenditure for one week: 315.17 euros or $419.95
Favorite foods: Delphine Le Moine’s Apricot Tarts, pasta carbonara, Thai food
Greenland: The Madsens of Cap Hope
Food expenditure for one week: 1,928.80 Danish krone or $277.12
Favorite foods: polar bear, narwhal skin, seal stew
Turkey: The Celiks of Istanbul
Food expenditure for one week: 198.48 New Turkish liras or $145.88
Favorite foods: Melahat’s Puffed Pastries
