Food identity / food quality : Synergy and antagonism

The complex relationship between the identity and the quality of food is well summarized in Levy Strauss's simple but relevant expression "food must be good to eat and good to think about" 1. This requirement is increasing in the current context, from the point of view of both the identity and the quality of food. These two elements are inextricably linked in the products we eat, but belong to different categories and require different analytical approaches. In this presentation, we address a central issue: how demands for food identity interact with hygiene and nutritional requirements, and how the producers, in particular family farmers, are taking these changes into account in their strategies. To address this question we shall present: (i) a historical perspective of the relationship between food identity and food quality; (ii) an analysis of the processes of identification / qualification of food, based on field work: "queUo de coalho" (curd cheese) in the North-East of Brazil. (iii) the economic consequences of cultural phenomena. (Résumé d'auteur