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MONTREAL (PasseportSanté.net) February 24, 2006 – The race against time that families face today has a direct impact on the time spent in the kitchen. On average, only 20 minutes per day are allocated to preparing meals. In 2000, 45 minutes were devoted to it, while at the beginning of the XXe century, women indulged in it daily for six hours!
Based on these data, Christina Blais, from the University of Montreal1, believes that “ready-to-serve” meals are largely responsible for the decline of the traditional family meal. “They threaten the nutritional quality of meals as well as the food culture and taste,” she exclaims. The advent of the microwave oven would have resulted in a loss of cooking skills.
Is the traditional family meal on the way out? Christina Blais believes it. “Each member of a family, including the woman, can now eat whenever they want, alone in front of the TV or at the computer,” she emphasizes.
This food crisis is based on a new reality: two-speed cooking! “There is the weekend cuisine, elaborate and tasty, and the weekly cuisine, routine and boring,” she says. The real public health challenge is precisely in everyday life. “
For the return of home economics lessons to school
What if the school was put to work by offering home economics courses? This idea was unanimous among the participants of the “What do we eat?” Conference. For a Canadian Food Policy ”, organized by the Canadian Research Institute of McGill University2. “This is the best way to educate young people, boys and girls, about the importance and the pleasure of cooking, while developing concern for the nutritional component of meals,” continued Christina Blais.
Cooking classes are scientifically recognized, she said, to have a positive effect on young people’s perceptions of cooking and healthy eating. “These classes significantly increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables, as well as the time spent in front of the stove,” she explains.
Teaching children: from the garden to the kitchen Cost of the initiative? Fifteen dollars per student, annually. The Screaming Avocado Café manages to be self-financing by offering menus at low cost. |
You can read the other news by consulting the index. |
Martin LaSalle – PasseportSanté.net
1. Christina Blais is responsible for clinical training in the Department of Nutrition at the University of Montreal.
2. The Institute for Canadian Studies at McGill University brought together, on February 16 and 17, 2006, more than 250 speakers around the theme “What do we eat?” For a Canadian food policy ”
3. Stratford Northwesternm Secondary School is a school located in the city of Stratford, Ontario. The Culinary Arts program website is: www.amdsb.ca [consulté le 22 février 2006].