New philosophy of food in the options of post-industrial society: illusions and prospects of cultural expansion

Abstract

Food in everyday human life is primarily a biological need, but it also occupies an important place in culture as a criterion of identity. The profound transformations of food practices in post-industrial society have influenced the fact that food is increasingly acquiring the status of a cultural code and a means of social identification. The process of adapting gastronomic practices can be carried out at the level of taste preferences and healthy eating. The digitalization and globalization of taste are shaping a new philosophy of food.  Objective. The aim of the article is to fully understand the new philosophy of food in the realities of post-industrial society through the identification of the main errors of modern gastronomic customs and the justification of the possibilities of cultural dissemination of food as a social and symbolic phenomenon. Methods. The research methodology is based on the use of philosophical analysis, cultural perspective and sociology. The methods of critical analysis, comparison, content analysis, as well as a combination of scientific ideas of gastronomic affiliation, media events and globalization movements are used. Results. The development of the philosophical understanding of food from a biological need to a cultural and symbolic phenomenon in the conditions of a post-industrial society is analyzed. The concepts of "gastronomic identity", "food as media" and "culinary performance" are defined. The main features of the post-industrial socio-cultural paradigm are characterized and their impact on the transformation of food practices is outlined. The main illusions of post-industrial gastroculture are clarified, in particular the mythologizing of conscious consumption, the aestheticization of food and the commercialization of environmental views. The mechanisms of pseudo-individualization of food choice in the conditions of algorithmization and trend economy are analyzed. The potential of food as a tool of cultural expansion and soft power in the globalized world is assessed. The prospects of alternative food models as factors of socio-cultural transformations are outlined. A generalized model of the future development of food philosophy is formed, taking into account technological, anthropological and ethical challenges.Conclusions. The findings confirm that the new food philosophy in post-industrial society merges the actual potentials of cultural spread with many deceptions of mindful sustenance. A deep grasp of eating habits enables us to sketch the prospects of their impact on societal shifts and the development of a future food ethic.