Workpackage 3: Procuring foods and planning/preparing meals in later life

Workpackage led by:
Dr Cornelie Pfau
(to view contact details click here)

Overall objective of Workpackage 3:
The overall objective of this WP is to determine the interaction between shopping, food selection, economic constraints and meal preparation skills in older people.

The detailed objectives of this WP are to:
• To determine the typical patterns in which the supply of food products and meal preparation
   abilities interact in determining the menu of older people
• To develop proposals regarding the development of new food products (aimed specifically
   at older people) which take identified patterns/constraints into account designed for increased
   convenience
• To compare food procurement and meal preparation plans across cultures, age groups and
   living circumstances
• To identify questionnaire items relating to food procurement and meal preparation plans for
   inclusion in a Senior Food-QOL questionnaire for use with older people

Participating Centres:
• Food, Consumer Behaviour and Health Research Centre, University of Surrey, UK
• Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca per gli Alimenti e la Nutrizione (INRAN), Italy
• Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Sweden
• MAPP, The Aarhus School of Business, Denmark
• Faculdade de Ciências da Nutrição e Alimentação da Universidade do Porto, Portugal
• Department of Human Nutrition, University of Warmia and Mazury, Poland
• Grup d’Estudis Alimentaris, University of Barcelona, Spain

Aim
The aim of WP3 in the Food in Later Life project was to capture the factors that influence shopping and meal preparation in old age. On the one hand, this target group’s typical patterns of behaviour concerning meal provision were identified and depicted by country in a typology. On the other hand, changes and problems that arise at the independent meal provision in old age were determined in order to develop suitable strategies and recommendations to be able to overcome these problems.

Method
In each partner country, 20 men and 20 women (living alone or with partners) over the age of 64 years were accompanied when grocery shopping and observed. Subsequently, a problem-centred interview concerning meal and food preparation was conducted within a few days. The data collection was supplemented by various questionnaires concerning shopping, health and food-related quality of life.

Results
Typical patterns
When building groups of food-related behaviour in all countries, gender-specific behaviour represents – among others – an important factor. Shopping and meal preparation are most definitely regarded to be a woman’s responsibility. As a result of different resources, attitudes and responsibilities in the field of meal preparation, men have to deal with different problems than women. In many cases men have less developed cooking skills because they only began to prepare meals after retiring and therefore developing different strategies for sustaining independence in older age than women. Men seem to be more dependent on social networks, whereas women know how to deal with physical problems from the outset because of their more developed cooking skills and long experience.

Changes and problems in meal provision
With regard to the changes and problems, more similarities than differences were found between individual countries. However, the same problems often arise to different extents. As long as no or only slight health-related constraints occur and/or the social life situation remains the same, where shopping or meal preparation are concerned, no serious changes or problems occur.

The more health problems increase, the more difficult shopping becomes. Access to shopping facilities in the proximity of the residence, so they can be reached by foot, gains more importance. Cars play a much more prominent role in the Northern countries compared to the Southern countries; the loss of a car has severe consequences. Difficulties arising in the shopping facilities are reported in all countries and are due to the environment and equipment that is not suitable for older people (e.g. groceries are placed too high or too low on the shelves; the design and handling of the shopping trolleys are not satisfactory; shelves and products are poorly labelled). Product choice is not only based on quality and price, but size, weight, type of packaging and trust in the product are of importance as well.

Some respondents (predominantly women) who used to have little time and are in good health, now take more time for meal preparation, and are cooking more elaborate meals. When strength decreases and health constraints increase, elaborate cooking methods are replaced by simpler ones, with some preparation methods (e.g. baking cakes) being abandoned altogether. Cooking becomes too exhausting and can cause stress.

Changes in the life situation, too, can have an effect on meal preparation. Especially women who do not cook for their families or their partners anymore often feel that it is not worthwhile to cook just for themselves. Menu and meal diversity changes; meals they used to prepare with fresh ingredients are replaced by convenience products or are abandoned. The mode and the extent of use of convenience products, however, tends to be different in the individual countries.
Problems arise concerning opening packages, the manual processing of foods and the handling of electrical equipment. Pots and pans have become too big and too heavy; the respondents report an increased risk of injury, (e.g. when using graters and knives) and fears of using certain appliances (e.g. pressure cookers, microwaves, or the assembly of certain kitchen appliances). Often appliance capacities are too big, and their use is considered uneconomic. In some countries, lack of knowledge concerning kitchen appliances and their use are reported, as well as prices that are considered to be too high.

Conclusions
Health status, living circumstances, gender and cooking abilities, attitudes, preferences, economic situation and support systems have a great influence on shopping and meal preparation – more than age. Health status has a substantial influence on independent food shopping; if an individual can no longer shop for food themselves, an independent meal supply can only be maintained by use of formal and informal networks.