Meat Science 86 (2010) 95–102 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Meat Science journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/meatsci Review Meat products and consumption culture in the East Ki-Chang Nam a, Cheorun Jo b, Mooha Lee c,d,⁎ a Department of Animal Science and Technology, Sunchon National University, Suncheon, 540-742 Republic of Korea b Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, 305-764 Republic of Korea c Division of Animal and Food Biotechnology, Seoul National University, Seoul, 151-921 Republic of Korea d Korea Food Research Institute, Seongnam, 463-746 Republic of Korea article info abstract Article history: Food consumption is a basic activity necessary for survival of the human race and evolved as an integral part Received 29 January 2010 of mankind's existence. This not only includes food consumption habits and styles but also food preparation Received in revised form 19 March 2010 methods, tool development for raw materials, harvesting and preservation as well as preparation of food Accepted 8 April 2010 dishes which are influenced by geographical localization, climatic conditions and abundance of the fauna and flora. Food preparation, trade and consumption have become leading factors shaping human behavior and Keywords: developing a way of doing things that created tradition which has been passed from generation to generation Meat-based products Food culture making it unique for almost every human niche in the surface of the globe. Therefore, the success in The East understanding the culture of other countries or ethnic groups lies in understanding their rituals in food consumption customs. Meat consumption culture in the East has not been well developed by its characteristic environment, religion, history, and main food staples. However, recently, the amount of meat production and consumption of the Eastern countries has grown rapidly by the globalization of food industry and rapid economic growth of the countries. This manuscript introduces meat-based products and consumption culture in Asian countries. However, because the environments and cultures within Asia are too diverse to cover all food cultures, this manuscript focused mainly on three northeast Asian countries including China, Japan, and Korea (Republic of) and some southeast Asian countries including Vietnam and Thailand, which have similar environments and cultural interactions historically but retain their own characteristic food culture. © 2010 The American Meat Science Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Contents 1. Introduction ............................................................... 96 2. Food culture ............................................................... 96 2.1. Food culture group based on common food ingredients ....................................... 96 2.2. Food culture based on common eating methods ........................................... 97 2.3. Factors determining establishment of food culture.......................................... 97 3. Meat products and consumption culture of the East ............................................ 97 3.1. China ............................................................... 97 4. Difference between Chinese and western food culture ........................................... 98 5. Popular meat-based cuisine in China ................................................... 98 5.1. Korea ............................................................... 98 6. Popular meat-based cuisine in Korea ................................................... 99 6.1. Japan .............................................................. 100 7. Popular meat-based cuisine in Japan .................................................. 100 7.1. Thailand ............................................................ 101 7.2. Vietnam ............................................................ 101 8. Conclusion............................................................... 102 References ................................................................. 102 ⁎ Corresponding author. Tel.: +82 31 780 9114; fax: +82 31 709 9876. E-mail address: [email protected] (M. Lee). 0309-1740/$ – see front matter © 2010 The American Meat Science Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.meatsci.2010.04.026 96 K.-C. Nam et al. / Meat Science 86 (2010) 95–102 1. Introduction Table 1 Changes of per capita income, number of major species of animals in Korea, China, and Asia.a Globalization refers in general to the worldwide integration of humanity and is a phenomenon by which the experience of everyday Year Increase rate fl fl (1956–2006) life, as in uenced by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, re ects a 1956 1985 2006 standardization of cultural expressions around the world. Therefore, Korea in order to live in a globalised world it is necessary to understand the Per capita income (US$) 66 2,309 17,500 265.1 language, culture and life style of other country-partners. Food and its Cattle number (MH) 0.87 2.94 2.48 2.8 consumption culture is one of the most important factors associated Pig number (MH) 1.26 2.85 9.38 7.4 with the unique culture of various ethnic groups or nations. Food Chicken number (MH) 8.92 51.08 119.18 13.3 Formula feed (M/T) 0.16 6.45 15.473 96.7 consumption is a basic activity contributing to survival of human Consumption of animal 6.10 42.20 105.33 17.2 beings. Therefore, the understanding of the food culture creates a products (kg/person/year)b better understanding and more intimate relationship among China countries and people (Koo, Kwon, Lee & Ly, 2008). Humans, especially Per capita income (US$) 59 292 2,034c 34.5c at the beginning of their existence were strongly dependant on the Cattle number (MH) 49.51 62.71 117.66 2.3 fi Pig number (MH) 85.62 313.86 510.62 6.0 environment. Hunting, shing and crop collections were the primary Chicken number (MH) 540.85 1,266.89 4,356.97 8.1 activities occupying most of the time of the primitive societies. With Formula feed (M/T) 21.83 170.49 103.004 4.7 the development of agricultural methods such as the domestication of Consumption of animal 8.40 28.50 92.94 11.1 various food plants and animals food supply become more secure. products (kg/person/year) Asiad This improvement in agriculture in general, allowed some funda- Per capita income (US$) 513 3,228 3,425c 6.7c mental changes in the human way of life. Harvested crops or animal Cattle number (MH) 319.0 373.85 460.75 1.5 products materials were preserved, processed, or cooked. To consume Pig number (MH) 118.47 380.91 618.88 5.2 these foods comfortably and safely, people have used their own Chicken number (MH) 1,088.21 3,117.77 8,980.42 8.3 characteristic utensils such as plates, tables, chopsticks and others. In Formula feed (M/T) 68.18 297.45 480.235 7.0 Consumption of animal 28.70 48.0 77.205 2.7 addition, to enjoy the foods, they created etiquettes within their products (kg/person/year) culture to systemize food consumption activities. a Adapted from Han, Ha and Lee (2009). Asia is one of the largest continents in the world. It includes China b Data including beef, pork, chicken meat, eggs and milk. (The People's Republic of China), Taiwan (Republic of China), Japan, c Data adjusted from on-line information (www.nationmaster.com). south Korea (Republic of Korea), north Korea (People's Republic of d Data including Oceania and Pacific. Korea), the Mongolian People's Republic, and countries of Southeast Asia, stretching from its cool northern borders with Europe to the tropical islands of the Pacific(Kittler & Sucher, 2001). by the climate conditions. The second stage is called the “hunger and Historically variety of meats and meat products has been mutual aid” stage when people had started farming however the developed in Europe and America where a large amount of meat increase of population still caused food shortage which was unequally products have been consumed. In Asian countries, in contrast, grains distributed between subjugated and the ruling classes. The subjugat- and vegetables significantly contribute to the consumer's diets and a ed class struggled with food quantity and quality whereas the ruling relativelysmallamountofmeatormeatproductshavebeen class had an abundance of good quality foods. The third stage is called consumed. Therefore, the meat and meat processing industry have the “stable stage” which was characterized by the abundance of foods not been well developed in the Asian region. This historical trend in regardless of the hierarchical position of an individual. The fourth food consumption has been changed in the recent years. During the stage is called the “enjoy stage” when the consumption of such foods last 50 years, per capita income of Asia (including Oceania and Pacific) as meat, fish, and fruits increased dramatically. It was accompanied by increased 6.7 times from 1956 (513 US$) to 2006 (3425 US$) a rapid growth of instant foods and the restaurant industry. Finally, (Table 1). Along with the increase of income, the consumption of the fifth stage called the “health-aimed stage” has been characterized animal products (including milk and eggs) also increased 2.7 times by the increased consciousness about the effect of food on human from 1956 (28.7 kg/person/year) to 2006 (77.205 kg/person/year). health with the fast growing popularity of the functional foods (Park Due to a rapid economic growth in Asian countries and a strong et al., 2007). expansion of western culture, the relative