Performing National Identity Through Peruvian Food Migration in Santiago De Chile
Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration in Santiago de Chile
WALTER A. IMILAN
Imilan, Walter A. (2015). Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration in Santiago de Chile. Fennia 193: 2, 227–241. ISSN 1798-5617.
The article explores the processes of re-production of national identity based on food-related practices and discourses of Peruvian migrants living in Santiago de Chile. The meeting point of these three fields – migration, national identity and food – is most evidently performed in the celebration of the Peruvian National Holidays in Santiago. The article finds evidence that the performance in this national festivity reinforces a sense of Peruvianness, thus contributing to the study of contemporary processes of renewal of national identities in transna- tional contexts. The case study also demonstrates that the ascription of national identity by Peruvian in Santiago is strategic, and it operates as an assemblage of various and locally situated elements.
Keywords: migration, national identity, food migration, performance, Santiago de Chile
Walter A. Imilan, Instituto de la Vivienda, Facultad de Arquitectura y Urbanismo, Portugal 85, Santiago, Universidad de Chile, Chile, E-mail: [email protected]
Introduction clearly reenact the kind of identity process theo- rized by Goffman (2009) and Bruner (1986), which The presence of Peruvian migrants in the city of stress the importance of communication to achieve Santiago de Chile has become increasingly visible recognition from ‘others’, in this case, the host so- thanks to a booming of food-related businesses ciety. This performativity of national identity finds a such as restaurants and convenience stores. These precise time and space for its execution in the case businesses advertise themselves with a Peruvian of Peruvian migrants in Santiago. Since 2012, a se- image through the display of national symbols like ries of massive celebrations have taken place in flags, photographs and logos that certify the na- central parts of the city during the Peruvian Na- tional origin of their products. Through these refer- tional Holiday. These weekend festivals follow the ences, they have shaped an unprecedented mi- concept of culinary festivals, which have become grant landscape in Santiago (Imilan 2014). Food increasingly popular in Peru, mixed with elements businesses have become a successful integration taken from Chilean National Holidays. Among all strategy for an important sector of the migrant the Peruvian communities abroad, it is only in San- community who rely on displaying a recognizable tiago that Peruvian migrants have attempted to re- link to their national origin. create a sense of national identity by at the same This article explores the ways in which migra- time seeking recognition from the host society. tion, food and national identity intersect in the case Food is undoubtedly an important resource in of Peruvian migrants in Santiago. Food and the ac- the construction of individual and collective iden- tivities surrounding it are not only a resource for tities (Goody 1982). In contexts of globalization economic integration, but also act as a mediating and transnational migrations, food migration – factor in the re-creation of a Peruvian national understood as the movement of foodstuffs and cu- identity. Peruvian migrants in Santiago indeed use linary practices during human migration – opens food as a way of performing their national distinc- up a field where multiple geographies intersect; tiveness from the host society. In this sense, they references to what is local, national and global
URN:NBN:fi:tsv-oa46369 DOI: 10.11143/46369 228 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) are reorganized based on the everyday experi- shape to an unprecedented migration landscape ence of migrants. (Stefoni 2008; Imilan 2014). Peruvian migration to Chile has rapidly in- Certainly, the concept of national cuisine has creased in the last decade. In 2011, over thirty played a significant role in the construction of im- thousand temporary residency visas were granted aginaries of national communities since the rise of to Peruvian citizens, thus becoming the largest mi- national states in the nineteenth century (Barlösius grant group, which currently makes up 37% of 2011). In Peru, in recent years, these culinary prac- Chile's foreign population and close to 2.5% of tices have influenced the way in which Peruvian- the total national population (DEM 2013). ness is narrated and performed. At the same time, Research on migration to Chile is relatively re- they have driven a very successful gastronomic in- cent and it focuses on a few specific subjects: fem- dustry. Thus, nowadays Peruvian cuisine has be- inization processes (Mora 2008; Stefoni & Fernan- come both a marker of national identity and a dez 2011; Tijoux 2013); transnational maternity source of economic development. The government and care (Acosta 2013; Gonzálvez 2014); use and agencies and private associations of gastronomic construction of public and private space (Garcés entrepreneurs, who act as official promoters, have 2014; Márquez 2014; Imilan 2014); border rela- worked together in the formulation and execution tions (Lube & Garcés 2012; Tapia-Ladino 2012); of policies aimed at promoting food-related busi- and aspects related to migration and citizenship nesses and activities. Thus, they have contributed to (Stefoni 2011; Thayer 2013). The food migration the strengthening of a dominant narrative around field has only been marginally investigated, main- Peruvian culinary knowledge. Entrepreneurship, ly as economic integration strategies and not as a sustainable food industry, heritage of food products source for identity construction processes. and local producers have joined forces, achieving The presence of Peruvian migrants in Chile is international recognition and a prestige status (Lau- particularly relevant when one considers that er & Lauer 2006). As a result, there has been a sig- Chile’s national identity was founded on a relation nificant improvement in the labor perspectives of based on opposition to the elements of Peruvian Peruvians working in this sector both at home and culture. The War of the Pacific (1879–1883) played abroad. The emergence of this renewed national a fundamental role in configuring both national narrative has had a deep impact on an important imaginaries – especially in the consolidation of occurrence in Peru's recent history: in the course of Chilean national identity – bringing about con- the last two decades over 10% of the country's pop- trasts and differentiations which still persist today ulation has migrated abroad (Sánchez 2012). A (González & Parodi 2014). The war resulted in the strengthened notion of national cuisine now sup- defeat of the allied army of Bolivia and Peru, and ports the renewal of symbolic and emotional links the loss of a significant portion of their national of the millions of migrants with their country and territories. Additionally, the Chilean army took communities of origin. possession of Peru’s capital city, Lima, for two This article focuses on the public performance of years (1881–1883). national identity in relation to food practices. Its Chileans have constructed their image as a main argument is that Peruvian migrants in Santiago white, – allegedly European – modern and wealthy construct their national identity by appropriating society exactly in contrast to Peruvians, who have the official narrative surrounding Peruvian food and been regarded in the Chilean imaginary as poor, cuisine. The migrants take advantage of this narra- backwards and indigenous. This outlook still in- tive as an effective strategy in the negotiation of forms all sorts of discriminatory actions and heat- their multi-sited emplacements resulting from their ed nationalist debates in relation to the large pres- transnational experiences. The present article illus- ence of Peruvian population in Santiago (Garcés trates the mechanisms of performing national iden- 2014). However, instead of attempting to “blend tity as an assemblage of narratives and practices that in” as a means of protection, the Peruvian migrants are produced in different spaces – national and make themselves visible in the public spaces of transnational – and performed in Santiago. Based Santiago. This is particularly true for activities re- on an ethnographic account of the celebration of lated to gastronomy. Especially in Santiago's case the Peruvian National Holiday in Santiago, the pa- one can speak of a Peruvian food migration. Peru- per reflects on how food plays a major role in un- vian food shops, restaurants and street food ven- derstanding the forms of self-representation and dors have transformed the urban space, giving recognition of the Peruvian migrant community FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 229 abroad. Furthermore, it explores the re-construction Food, as a source of construction of national of a national identity as a local process within the identities, has been one of the main narratives in context of transnational migrations. the making of imagined communities (Anderson 1993), as described by Elias (2010) in terms of the civilizing power of what and how to eat. Food and identities In global contexts, the national is redefined as a contest between diverse geographies. For instance, The relationship between food and processes of Wilk (1999) indicates that Belize’s cuisine is de- identity formation might seem obvious. The state- fined only after contrasting this country with its ment “we are what we eat” is adequately concep- previous colonial rule, its neighbors and its com- tualized in the idea of ‘foodways’, which describes munities in diaspora. The negotiation between the feeding practices that interlock with the cul- these geographies was furthered by tourism in the ture, tradition and history of different communities. young independent State, which demanded a na- Classical anthropologists such as Malinowski tional specificity to its culinary culture. One of the (1985) or Boas (1987) approached food practices characteristics of a narrative linked to food is that as central elements in the understanding of group it is embodied. In other words, it becomes part of solidarity. Harris (1984) focused on the ways in an individual through the body and the sensitive which societies generate their nourishment stand- mediations that consolidate memories (Sutton ards based on their relationship with the environ- 2001). In this sense, food and the construction of a ment (natural resources, climate, etc.). According notion of ‘home’ are, in many cases, inseparable to Douglas (2002) the religious distinction between (Cieraad 2006). ‘pure’ and ‘impure’ hid behind everyday food prac- Food has an unconscious force, in the non-dis- tices. Lévi-Strauss (1997) went somewhat beyond cursive sense, as the construction of identity im- by stating that food is not just “good for thinking” plies high levels of subjective appropriation for its but also “good for eating”. He endeavored to clear sensitive internalization. At the same time, food is up such an inquiry by observing the way cultures ‘designed’ to be shared, to communicate differ- work. In fact, the relationship between identity and ence. This is how its performative strength is gener- food is discussed in many research studies, making ated. This is also what commonly takes place with its multiple roles within culture evident. migrant populations that arrange their culinary Beyond the concerns of anthropology about practices as spaces of communication and recog- food, a field of inquiry has recently developed nition. In this sense, the so-called “ethnic restau- with a strong focus on the commodification of rants” (Möhring 2012) are spaces where local cli- food and cuisines. Classic works on the subject in- ents are taken on a sensory voyage to a foreign clude the biography of sugar by Mintz (1986) place. They present themselves as a ‘fragment’ of which narrates the various episodes that paved the the foreign culture that co-inhabits in the city and way to the globalization of sugar production in the enriches its consumers by broadening their sensi- Caribbean islands. As sugar becomes “good for tive repertoires. Although the dishes offered in eating”, it builds imaginaries, new relationships, these types of restaurants are often adapted to lo- tastes and distinctions, but also commercial, dip- cal tastes, the issue here is not whether a particular lomatic and armed conflicts. dish is genuine or not, but to understand the whole The study of food and cuisines is thriving and in process as a form of communication, of setting the recent years it has given birth to an interdiscipli- stage for difference. Gastronomy is, in this sense, a nary research field concerned with the relation- source of cultural performance. ship between food, globalization and identities (see Watson & Caldwell 2005; Nützenadel & Trentmann 2008). Peruvian national identity, national These “food biographies” are ways of explaining food narrative local–global connections and the different over- lapping agents and actors. The acknowledgment of food as part of an identity repertoire makes room Peru is currently experiencing a gastronomical for the conflicts between ‘sameness’ and ‘other- boom. This process was consolidated during the ness’ in times of economic globalization (Watson mid-1990s, encouraged by major transformations & Cadwell 2005). in the culinary production derived from its interna- 230 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) tionalization. Mirko and Vera Lauer (2006) call it a gin and turning them into a reason for pride. Exter- “gastronomic revolution” and characterize it as a nal valuation and the appeal of Peruvian cuisine in series of changes which took place both within a more cosmopolitan and globalized context has Peru and abroad: changes in the “techniques, been fundamental in this process. Matta (2012: tastes, ingredients, business attitudes, professional 23) observes that “the introduction of Peruvian cultures, consumers' participation, local and inter- gastronomy in this cosmopolitan field has ex- national recognition, academic research, the re- pressed itself since the nineties, with the fortunate covery of historical and regional heritage, editorial encounter of a certain amount of native ingredi- impulse and presence on the public space” (Lauer ents with international culinary techniques in- & Lauer 2006: 15). For these authors, these chang- spired by French Nouvelle Cuisine. The first results es were made possible by the revaluation of the set the foundation for a wave that has been called existing cuisine and the discovery of the ancient Novoandina (neo-Andean), a term coined by chefs one. This took place simultaneously with the emer- Bernardo Roca Rey and Luis Cucho La Rosa in the gence of young chefs of the haute cuisine coming eighties”. Rodriguez, Peruvian anthropologist, from the upper class families of Lima. ironically states that this generation of chefs had to The 1990s was the decade in which Peru opened use the prefix neo, “...simply because the term An- up to the world, as a result of neoliberal policies, dean had not appealed to the elites of Lima”.1 while at the same time it marked the beginning of Another element that was central in this devel- the Peruvian diaspora. In this context, Peruvian opment was the role played by the expansion of cuisine became a link between migrants and their the tourism industry, which transformed Peru, es- communities of origin (Altamirano 2000). A sense pecially with the success of Machu Picchu as a of nostalgia led to the popularization of certain ba- tourist attraction, into a global destination. In fact, sic products of the Peruvian diet. Nevertheless, as gastronomy and tourism have been related to the mentioned earlier, for most of these migrants, food so-called ‘boom’ from the beginning. Today tour- remains a private affair. ists attempt to get a taste of local cuisine, but find The Peruvian cuisine boom mainly refers to a an offer of international restaurants. Tourism con- haute cuisine segment. Its main characteristic is tributed to the development of a high-standard lo- the appropriation of Andean and Amazonian food cal food offer, encouraging the sophistication of products that are considered to be ‘traditional’ and traditional recipes. ‘native’. These mostly indigenous foodstuffs, The gastronomical boom and its association strongly linked to their regional consumption, with a narrative of national identity building can be gained status after going “through the hands of said to be the product of an assemblage of actors cooks with privileged personal stories, who had and institutions of the public and private sectors the possibility of studying in Europe and the Unit- that carry out development projects and proposals ed States of America” (Matta 2011: 201). Thus, tra- on a local, regional and international scale. The ditional culinary practices were revalued by these initiatives are directed, as stated by Matta (2011: cosmopolitan segments of Peruvian society. There 50), towards “exporting Peruvian Cuisine – or a so- is a marked social class connotation behind the phisticated version of it – through the opening of modern construction of the profession and image Peruvian restaurants abroad and the systematiza- of the chef as an artist and entrepreneur. His indi- tion of certain types of local or ‘native’ agricultural vidual talent is a source of social prestige, prestige production with the objective of guaranteeing the that is closely linked to his upper class origin. sustainability of a Peruvian culinary-gastronomic However, this process has trickled down from the system and acknowledging the contribution of ru- higher urban classes down to the popular classes. ral Andean and Amazonian knowledge and culi- Matta (2011: 39) confirms that “the experimental nary traditions, or attaining UNESCO's recognition and playful impulse or the revaluation of local in- as an intangible cultural heritage”. gredients are two contributions that come from Among the private actors, APEGA (Asociación above and that are subsequently adopted by lower Peruana de Gastronomía, in Spanish) is undoubt- class businesses”. This appropriation by the lower edly the most relevant. It has achieved agreements classes is the reason why authors have called this a with ministries, government agencies and univer- multiregional and multiclass revolution. This call sities, and links to agriculture and livestock pro- to identity has dug deep in the collective imagina- ducers. The association promotes Peruvian gas- tion by connecting foods with their cultures of ori- tronomy in all areas of commercial development FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 231 together with other objectives not limited to reve- tourism. As part of their job, a series of interna- nue production, such as campaigning for healthier tional promotional videos where Peruvian cuisine nutrition or the promotion of agricultural, livestock plays a major role was created. For example, the and hydrobiological resources in an inclusive first advertisement was named “Peru, Nebraska”3, manner (APEGA/CEPLAN 2012). Their marketing in reference to a small town named Peru located in activities reach their highest point each year in Nebraska, USA. The spot begins with a bus bear- Mistura, Lima, the culinary fair that has become ing the colors of the Marca Perú in which Peruvian well known and grown in importance in recent celebrities arrive at the Midwestern town: actors, years, with over half a million visitors in Septem- actresses and well known chefs from Lima fol- ber 2013.2 Additionally, during other months they lowed by musicians, singers and others. Among organize a series of regional fairs in which devel- the chefs, there are some who have recently been opment projects with local farming producers are raised to celebrity status. The group is dressed in launched. APEGA has carried out the Alianza Pro- uniform and headed by Gastón Acurio – an icon of ject since 2009, linking cooks and farmers in order the gastronomic boom, who, not coincidentally, to support the articulation of small producers in drives the bus. In the spot, the Peruvian guests culinary markets. They have also headed a series teach the town inhabitants about their rights as of initiatives oriented towards reassessing culinary ‘Peruvians’. The first right is shouted by one of the heritage and launching Lima as a culinary capital chefs: “You live in Peru and have the right to eat within the continent. delicious food”, as the rest of the group displays a A main component of this process has been the variety of Peruvian dishes. education of new cooks through the publication of In 2012 a documentary called Peru Sabe: la books and other materials and, most importantly, cocina, arma social (Peru knows/tastes: cuisine as by directly supporting the development of cooking a social weapon) was produced. It covers a visit to schools, as in the case of the Pachacútec Cooking Peru by the Catalan chef Ferrán Adriá, famous for Institute. This school aims at reducing the social revolutionizing the profession through molecular gap among young cookery students. Educational cuisine. According to the script, Adriá is invited to institutions are expensive and are mostly attended Peru by Gastón Acurio. The whole story seems en- by the middle and higher classes. The Institute was gineered, more a marketing strategy than a true established in Ventanilla, a poverty stricken district documentary. The popular Peruvian chef accom- of Lima. Not only is the tuition relatively low, but panies Adriá as a guide through the country's re- they also benefit the students through links to oth- gions, showing the Catalan chef the diversity of er international institutes and chefs. Their best foodstuffs and the wisdom of Peruvian gastrono- ones have access to internships and workshops, my. The documentary seems to show how Adriá, for example in European countries like Spain and from Europe, Old World and cradle of haute cui- Italy. A similar case is the Pisco Cooking School in sine, discovers or re-discovers the wealth of Peru the city of Pisco. These educational initiatives por- in a metonymical way. The visit ends in the tray an image of Peruvian gastronomy as a space of Pachacútec Cooking Institute, where Peru's culi- professional development that enables social mo- nary potential is revealed as a social revolution by bility for young men and women from disadvan- enabling social mobility for disadvantaged Peruvi- taged classes. an youths. Thus the gastronomic industry is re- APEGA's intention, judging from the quantity of vealed as a complex and integrated strategy for the projects it supports and their broad spectrum, is un- country's development. doubtedly to transform Peruvian gastronomy to a In recent years the alliance between APEGA national industry that integrates different elements and State agencies has put forward a series of cu- into a holistic whole: from the work of agricultural linary holidays, such as “Día del Pollo a la Brasa” producers in the isolated regions of the country to (Grilled Chicken Day, 2010), “Día del Pisco Sour” the exportation of culinary knowledge and prac- (Pisco Sour Day, 2004) “Día Nacional del Cevi- tices to more sophisticated global markets. che” (National Ceviche Day, 2008), “Año Nacion- Among the most important State actors is al de la Papa” (National Year of Potatoes, 2008) Promperú (Comisión de Promoción del Perú para and “Año Nacional de la Quinoa” (National Year la Exportación y el Turismo, in Spanish), a ministe- of Quinoa, 2013). rial office in charge of developing a branding strat- It is important to point out that the relationship egy, known in Spanish as Marca País, to attract between state and food practices is not new in 232 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015)
Peru. In the 1920s, the Peruvian State promoted ences, Chinese, for example, regarded as threats to the development of so-called restaurantes popu- this process. Currently, the food campaigns are lares (working class restaurants), meant to offer the based on the acknowledgment of Peru's diverse emerging working class a diet in accordance with identities, integrating anything from ancestral food an urban and modern lifestyle. Drinot (2011) re- preparations (from pre-Incan and Incan times) to searched this institution in the context of moderni- the current trends, also mixing the culinary prac- zation and industrialization policies. He observed tices of a diversity of cultural influences: indige- that the fundamental objective of the project was nous, mestizo, European, Asian. Regional diversity to promote a society which adapts its cultural pro- is synthesized as well: products and preparations gram to an idea of modernization, which saw in of distant ecological spaces such as the Andes, the indigenous cultures its main hindrance. In this Coast and the Amazon jungle become unified. In way, the restaurantes populares should replace the fact, the discourse on national identity has changed feeding practices of the indigenous population, radically, although the elite in power, consequent- but at the same time they were meant to distance ly responsible for articulating these polices, be- the urban population from the growing influence longs to the same social groups then and now. In of Chinese restaurants, which already developed this sense, this new narrative is presented as an as a mass offer for the lower segments of society at apparent ‘discovery’ of popular food practices by that time.4 The racist conception of this policy, ori- the traditional elites, and the recognition of their ented toward annulling the indigenous and Asian economic value in a global context. A discourse is influences on the growing Peruvian urban working thus constructed around national cuisine that rec- class through eating habits, had little impact, ac- ognizes, values and integrates diversity as a perfect cording to Drinot. The restaurantes populares nev- metaphor of contemporary national identity. er attained the expected popularity and the gov- In terms of the present research, it is fundamen- ernment did not persevere enough with the project tal to point out that Peru's current food campaigns to counteract the dynamics of culture. not only strengthen the national identity of Peruvi- This first attempt by the state at policing food ans living in Peru, but also of those living abroad. was developed as part of an explicit project of the Thus, gastronomy becomes a key identity reference construction of the nation. Many research authors for Peruvian transnational communities. In this (Aragón 2014; Degregori 2014a) have pointed out sense, the TV spots of the Marca Perú end with a that the construction of a Peruvian national iden- message to all Peruvians: “Peru is an open brand, tity, conducted by ‘white’ urban elite, persistently we are all called to be its ambassadors”. This is a denied the country's indigenous societies during clear invitation to the Peruvian communities the twentieth century. To be an ‘indio’ (of indige- abroad. Here is the place where advertising poli- nous origin) was a stigmatized category, to the cies related to Peruvian gastronomy intersect with point that even the indigenous communities have the stories and experiences of migrants in Santiago. denied this ascription themselves, replacing it, for Peruvian migrants not only appropriate these example with the concept of ‘cholo’, a person of strategies, they also endow them with new mean- racially mixed origin with a distant indigenous ings, an activity now conceived on a global scale. past (Bruce 2007). This sustained process of invisi- It is, therefore, not surprising that some authors bilization of indigenous cultures in Peru explains (Altamirano 2000; Lauer 2012) claim that Peruvi- the lack of a national political project originating an cuisine has become a “cultural icon” for mi- from indigenous communities, as has been the grant communities, a point of reference for the case in the last two decades of the twentieth cen- collective construction of national identities. This tury in neighboring countries like Ecuador or Bo- is particularly true in Santiago. livia (Degregori 2014b). Although the State has stood behind the imple- mentation of the restaurantes populares and the Peruvian food marking Santiago enactment of the current food policies, there is a fundamental difference in the concept of national Peruvian migration to Santiago, especially during identity in both cases. In the 1920s food was the last 15 years, has transformed the urban land- meant to play a role in the formation of a modern scape (Imilan 2014). Currently over eighty thou- identity, through the invalidation and replacement sand Peruvians live in Chile's capital (DEM 2013). of indigenous identities and other cultural influ- Most of them come from the cities and regions of FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 233
Fig. 1. The localization of Peruvian restaurants in Santiago de Chile (March 2013).
the Northern Peruvian Coast, such as Chimbote, framework of so-called “nostalgia economies” Trujillo and Chiclayo, and to a lesser degree, from (Duany 2011) which mark public space. This in- Lima and its surroundings. There is very little re- cludes convenience stores offering national prod- search on migrants originating from the Andean ucts, call centers and, most importantly, restau- regions of Peru. Despite the lack of official records, rants of national Peruvian cuisine. we know from other research (Torres & Hidalgo Figure 1 shows the localization of Peruvian res- 2009; Correa et al. 2013) that a large segment earn taurants in Santiago. In the early 1990s, according their livelihood either in construction, in the case to restaurant owners interviewed as part of our re- of men; or housekeeping jobs, especially among search, there were only two Peruvian restaurants women; or they work as salespeople and in vari- in Santiago. The next restaurants to open were lo- ous businesses. There also are some who have a cated in the central sectors of the city. These cen- technical and professional education and have tral districts underwent a serious decay process had relative success finding work within the during the seventies and eighties, a time in which healthcare system or private businesses, but little is the middle and higher classes migrated to the pe- known about this last group as research tends to riphery. The deteriorated city center became avail- concentrate on the more vulnerable populations. able for low cost housing, frequently through in- A considerable number of people in this migrant formal access. This made room for migrants to set- community have become gastronomic entrepre- tle in these areas, mainly the historic center and neurs and businesspeople, especially within the the Recoleta and Independencia districts, espe- 234 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) cially after the late 1990s. For many migrants this Usually the study of food migration focuses on is the first stop when they arrive in the city. In these the so-called ethnic economies. Even though their districts the Peruvian culinary offer is first oriented empirical expression is a matter of great debate, towards the Peruvian community itself and then they can generally be defined as economic activi- secondly to Chileans. We found that in a second ties with access restricted to the ascription of a growth stage, during the first decade of the 2000s, common ethnic origin of its participants. In this the trend was to open new businesses towards the manner, migrant cuisines are usually linked to an eastern side of the city, where commercial, finan- exclusive economic dimension (Solé & Parella cial and residential districts with a high rate of 2005; Arjona Garrido & Checa 2007). consumption of global cuisine are located. The most thoroughly studied Peruvian migration During the months of January and February movements are those of people from Andean re- 2013, an enumeration of Santiago's restaurants gions to Lima, within Peru itself (Golte & Adams was carried out as part of the present research. A 1991; Sandoval 2009). Through strong and flexible team of research assistants5 searched different di- social bonds based on extended family, these mi- rectories and the city’s main streets to identify res- grants develop collective strategies in which they taurants and pinpoint their locations. In the sec- re-create an “Andean rationality” characterized by ond stage, the research team focused on the San- internal solidarity and a tendency to establish their tiago central area and carried out a detailed search own businesses (Golte 2001). on all streets to further identify Peruvian restau- Santiago presents a different case, beginning rants and carry out a brief survey in each one of with the origins of the migrants who have settled them. We were thus able to put together an ap- there, as explained above. The networks estab- proximate map of food businesses existing as of lished by them have been of great importance for March 2013. Over 300 restaurants were registered the development of this gastronomic industry. In during the time of this study. Santiago, we find open, flexible and dynamic net- This study gives a very specific image, within a works that are not always based on the structure of very specific time frame. This is constantly chang- the extended family; Chileans and migrants from ing, as observed during and after our research. other Latin American nationalities are often in- Some months after its completion, a series of new cluded in these networks (Imilan 2014). restaurants in the peripheral sectors of the city, where the middle classes reside, were identified. During the 1990s, Chile was a recovering de- Performing the national through mocracy and started opening its society to a glo- celebration balized consumer market. In a way, the rise of Pe- ruvian cuisine went hand in hand with the expan- sion of more complex leisure offerings in general, The Independence Day celebration in Peru does with food being one of them. not have a massive festival character; it is mainly an This increase in Peruvian restaurants managed official celebration of state authorities. Some events by migrants seems to be unique when compared of popular character are rare exceptions, such as a with similar cases in other cities, such as in Europe parade sponsored by Mr Wong, a supermarket or the United States of America, where employ- chain, in Lima which takes place a week before the ment strategies are usually linked to jobs in the Holiday's date (Ortemberg 2006). However, it has service and agricultural sectors (Altamirano 2000). gained a particular meaning for Peruvian migrant In these host countries, the food experience re- communities. In the United States, for example, mains within the private sphere of family and which hosts the largest Peruvian migrant commu- friends. Isolated entrepreneurial attempts depend nity, this holiday is celebrated with parades in some on a large initial investment and on expensive big cities. The Peruvian Parade follows the form of publicity campaigns, and are usually destined to other ethnic parades in the USA, based on the Pu- open trendy restaurants in exclusive neighbor- erto Rican Day Parade, to which it makes a direct hoods of big cities such as New York or London.6 reference, or the Saint Patrick's Day Parade of the In fact, Peruvian cuisine, in all possible price seg- Irish community, which is the oldest of this type of ments, seems to have found in Santiago its most events in this country (Berg 2005). On the other successful address of all the current destinations of hand, in Japan, where a large Peruvian community Peruvian migration. resides, the National Holiday is celebrated in salsa FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 235 music bars catering to the Latin American popula- in the time-space of origin. They are creative pro- tion. In the cities where the Peruvians gather to cel- cesses as well, active in the configuration of identi- ebrate together, Tokyo and Osaka, there is no pub- ties based on the new contexts and their need to lic expression of this festivity (Rossi 2014). Alterna- communicate a social and cultural difference to tively, in Santiago the celebration has become a “the Other”. Social performances are creative acts culinary festival, which lasts three days – a sort of in which participants play with values and mean- carnival, in which food plays a central role both in ings, re-presenting them; they are spaces to ‘think‘ public and private events. The Chilean National through identity relations (Bruner 1986; Geertz Holidays are a carnivalesque festivity. During the 1986). In fact, the idea of theatricality that accom- three or more days of celebration, food and music panies the concept of performance does not imply have an important presence. The Peruvian celebra- that the participants follow a pre-established tion in Santiago seems to mimic the elements of its script, simply carrying out a pre-formulated narra- Chilean counterpart. tive. It is the actors themselves who determine the On July 2013, Peru’s Independence Day was internal organization of the event. celebrated with two large events in central areas In the more traditional event – which first started of the city, where music and food abounded. The in 2003 – Santiago's mayor and Peru's ambassador differences between these two events are many. are usually present to salute the visitors. It takes Traditionally, they are organized yearly by event place on Sunday, in a central park of the city and producers linked to the Peruvian community and is visited each year by an increasing number of to the so-called “nostalgia industry” (product im- Chileans. Approximately one hundred food stands portation, telephone services, etc.). The more tra- offer the traditional fare of Peruvian gastronomy. In ditional of the two events maintains the character 2012 it was visited by forty thousand people ac- of a folk festival, while the second, which is cording to the organizers. younger, is a broader festival of Latin American The stands are harmoniously integrated into the migration in Santiago. park's vegetation, creating open spaces that the These events should be interpreted as social visitors use to gather together with their family and performances, as cultural acts or representations friends (Fig. 2). On one side, there is a huge stage, of cultural processes in specific contexts, and also equipped with state-of-the-art concert technology. as cultural agencies (Conquergood 1989). From In general the event is very well organized; all the this perspective, they are not just reproductions of details seem to have been considered in the con- a social and cultural universe that has been frozen text of such a large event.
Fig. 2. Event “Peruvian Na- tional Holiday” in Quinta Normal park in Santiago de Chile. 236 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015)
Each of the stands is a small restaurant, pants themselves. In 2013, Chileans seemed to equipped with grills and deep fryers. Most of the make up a majority of the visitors, identifiable by dishes are prepared beforehand, they only need to their pronunciation and by some elements in their be grilled or fried during the festival. The assigned way of dressing. The festivity has transformed a space becomes small between pots, grills, plastic space for the migrant community into an event containers full of seasoned foods and the team of meant to reach out to the host society. kitchen assistants. At noon, the visitors come in A good deal of information is presented in a and slowly spread around the festival's area, look- very didactic way: the food stands offer their prod- ing for where to have lunch. Around 5 p.m. the ucts under the assumption that the clients have space is packed. Long queues of visitors crowd absolutely no knowledge of the greatness of Peru- around the stands. vian cuisine. Whether this is so or not, this way of One of these stands is managed by Trinidad, presenting the dishes heightens the performative who arrived from Lima 15 years ago. During six character of the event. The lists of ingredients are years, she worked as a housemaid. Later she written clearly in large letters, the origin of some of opened a small food business in the city center. In them is explained, and cooks and helpers are her ‘cookery’ she sells lunch and offers other ser- available at all times to give detailed explanations. vices such as shipping services from Santiago to While accompanying some of our informants in Lima; either she or her husband travel themselves their stands, we observed that Chileans request the to deliver the packages. She has been preparing dishes that are more common in Santiago's restau- the whole week for the sales of this one day, with rants, while the Peruvian customers consume spe- the assistance of five family members who fry, cial recipes that are not available in this market. bake and sell different dishes. The majority of the On this subject, Beatriz, one of our informants, stand owners are small culinary businessmen and comments: “the carapulcra [a stew composed of businesswomen, who usually manage small cafe- many different meats] takes a long time to prepare, terias or sell food on the weekends on street mar- that is why Peruvians come here [to the festival]. kets, in their own homes or during special events. You will not find it elsewhere, and I am very good For example, Beatriz, a woman from Trujillo, has at preparing it”. specialized in homemade dishes that are usually Each stand's cooking capacity is impressive. served on special occasions and are not available Trinidad, for example, has purchased over 40 at restaurants. She works as a caregiver for elderly chickens, which allows her to sell at least 140 por- people during the week and on the weekends she tions. Furthermore, she offers sweet fried cakes offers her catering services. She wishes to consoli- (picarones), grilled meat and beverages. There is date a catering business that specializes in tradi- no rest amidst the stands, the grilling and frying tional dishes that are hard to find. fires are kept at full intensity throughout the day. During the day of the event, families play a cen- At the center of the field there is a stand selling tral role in the management of each of the stands. the shirts of the men's national football team and Cooks, salespeople and helpers are all part of the the women's national volleyball team. Groups of family. Trinidad receives the support of seven fam- young people buy shirts and then photograph ilies while Beatriz is helped by five. themselves dressed up in them. Businesses linked The festival, simply called “National Peru Day to transnational migration are also represented Celebration”, has maintained an evident and une- with stands. Some examples are pre-paid tele- quivocal ascription with the Peruvian community phone cards, money transfer and bus transport en- and is focused on the cuisine and music of the Pe- terprises. Even one of the buses that travel the ruvian community's popular culture. The food Santiago-Lima route (54 hours) is on exhibition stands are represented by small businesspeople right there in the middle of the park. and their families. Most of the bands playing early In the course of the afternoon a diversity of are non-professional groups of music and dance shows is presented on stage, for families and a that are active in Chile; the late evening is reserved broad audience. As the evening nears, famous Pe- for the stars of Peruvian popular and folk music. ruvian performers begin to take to the stage, such Without a doubt this event can be considered to as Anita Santibáñez who appears in Andean cos- be purely Peruvian. tumes and is backed up by high-end show produc- The attendance of Chileans to this event has in- tion. She sings ballads that narrate stories with creased over the years according to the partici- which the migrant community can identify: the FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 237
Fig. 3. Event Perú mil sabores at the Recoleta Stadium, 2013, Santiago de Chile.
feelings of nostalgia for the town left behind, sad- bands are usually a selection of commercially suc- ness at the thought of family, women who miss cessful artists coming from different corners of the their children, and other themes. Throughout the continent. This transforms the event into a Latin presentation she greets the people from different American celebration and not just a Peruvian one: towns and cities in Peru. To conclude, the audi- a celebration of migrants in Santiago. ence sings along with great emotion to the big bal- Each artist salutes his or her people, followed by lad hits of the evening. the rest of the audience. The famous ballad singer The second and younger event, which takes Segundo Rosero, from Ecuador, calls out to those place in the Recoleta district, is only a thirty minute coming from cities, such as Quito, Guayaquil and walk away. In 2013, it was its first edition and it Cuenca, to raise their hands and sing along. He lasted three days with a very well equipped musi- speaks about love and the nostalgia felt by “all cal program, including well-known artists from those who are far away from home, their family Peru as well as from Colombia and Ecuador (repre- and friends”. This Latin American spirit is present senting other two important migrant communities in each one of the presentations and in the event's in Chile). Around forty stands were organized in décor, through the use of flags of many countries line, on both sides of the soccer field of the Reco- of Latin America and the presence of a few food leta Stadium, located in one of Santiago's districts stands from Colombia, Ecuador and the Domini- with the highest rate of migrant residents. There was can Republic. a VIP area near the entrance where restaurants from There are stands that specialize in the sale of Lima set up representational stands, offering their Pisco Sour, a cocktail that has gained great popu- dishes together with a special selection of elegant larity in the city. Its main customers are of Chilean restaurants that are located in Santiago. The event's origin. Meanwhile, Peruvians quench their thirst name, Perú, mil sabores (Peru, a thousand flavors), with beer. The managers of these stands have come reflects the land's culinary wealth. The showcased from Peru exclusively for this festival. They are not restaurants belong to culinary professionals, never- the only ones, 22 stands share this same situation, theless, the massive character of this event is best mostly representing Peruvian restaurants. The most represented by the musical program (Fig. 3). On the successful ones serve grilled meat using techniques closing day, more than twenty thousand people unknown to Chileans. In this case, the hungry cli- celebrated in front of a stage of large dimensions. ents stand in line for up to an hour before being Musical performances began in the afternoon served a portion. Food and drink are relatively ex- and they extended until late in the evenings. The pensive, nevertheless, the stands are crowded and 238 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) the visitors eagerly consume the different dishes. Lins Ribeiro (2009) uses the concept of popular and Even before the musical program reaches its high non-hegemonic globalization to refer to the tactics point, there is no more food to buy. The event's or- developed by subaltern groups in order to obtain ganization is similar to that of the older festival. The benefits from the dynamics of global capitalism, es- decoration, the way the food is presented and the pecially linked to consumption, which have actu- services follow the same pattern. Some days after ally been designed at the core of great economic the events we interviewed some of the stand own- groups and transnational interests. Similarly, we ers of both festivals. In general, they all hoped to might say that in these celebrations of Peruvianness earn more money, their sales were not as good as the small impresarios make the globalization of Pe- expected. Additionally, the stand fees are high. ruvian cuisine as haute cuisine ‘popular’. In this Consequently they all expressed an interest in try- sense, migrants find in the appropriation of this im- ing out the other festival next year. age an opportunity to successfully develop their Beyond the differences between both events, own migratory projects. they can be seen as cultural performances. Peruvi- anness is staged as an identity that expresses itself through gastronomy, and gastronomy as an exclu- Conclusions sive knowledge of a national community. Peruvian gastronomy has been recognized on a global scale The success of a migrant culinary culture is usually due to its quality, particularity and sophistication. regarded as the success of ethnic economies. The production and consumption of food develops Within migration studies, the proliferation of res- into an event in which an identity experience is taurants and activities linked to gastronomy are performed. The differences between regional at- usually observed as an indicator, an expression of tributes of great importance within Peru are blend- social networks based on the origin of the migrants ed together in these events. The stands barely that encourages business activities as incorpora- make any reference to them: a national concep- tion strategies of the migrant population. Never- tion, unifying and integrating, governs at all times. theless, the success of Peruvian gastronomy in It is undeniable that this process of identity re- Chile is not only due to the development of an creation is supported by an entrepreneurial and economic strategy of migrant incorporation and commercial project. Although there are different migrant business culture. It is also due to the fact types of businesspeople involved, it must be em- that, as we have seen in detail, food plays a central phasized that it is the job of amateurs – among the role in this re-configuration of migrant identity via migrant population – and not of professionals to put the strategic deployment of national markers. In such decorative cultural events together. The mi- this sense, the text has approached three fields that grant population adopts sophisticated aesthetics to meet in a particular manner in the case of the Pe- present their stands and dishes. They serve, wear ruvian migrant community in Santiago: migration, uniforms and explain the dishes as if they were pro- food and national identity. fessionals from high-end restaurants. These aesthet- The idea elaborated in this article is that gas- ics and manners comply with a high global culinary tronomy becomes a mediator that assembles vari- standard, such as the one constructed by the official ous processes. On the one hand, there is private Peruvian discourse. This is a clear example of ordi- and governmental support for Peruvian cuisine as nary people appropriating globalized symbols such a globalized product oriented towards a market of as those linked to Peruvian gastronomy. In fact, a consumption of haute cuisine, whose innovative great part of the global dynamics generated around potential is globally sustained by relying on a par- Peruvian cuisine has been produced with the aim of ticular national tradition. On the other hand, there supporting a sophisticated concept of entrepreneur- are Peruvian migrants who, following rigorous ship, on a high scale structure of investments. The work and business ethics, offer a local product that hundreds of stand owners who participate in these cannot only be considered exotic or be associated events do not belong to this segment. Nevertheless, with the “nostalgia consumption” of the migrant they make themselves part of this imaginary of the community. They develop a cuisine oriented to- Peruvian gastronomic world. What the participants wards the host society as a commercial strategy do is appropriate the globalized semantics of Peru- and as a mechanism of recognition that attempts vian cuisine. In these terms, the makers of these cel- to transcend the historic relationship of discrimi- ebrations articulate a sort of popular globalization. nation of Chileans against Peruvians. FENNIA 193: 2 (2015) Performing national identity through Peruvian food migration 239
The relationship between gastronomy and na- don. Meanwhile, in Berlin, Enrique Serván works tional identity is staged and performed, especially towards establishing Peruvian cuisine within the during Peru's national holidays. In this context, Pe- city's culinary map. ruvianness is both communicated in and through a gastronomic performance which is also a creative process, as identity is being re-thought through cu- ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS linary practices. By performing and staging Peruvi- This research was supported by FONDECYT N° anness in gastronomic ways, Peruvian migrants in 11121539 “La experiencia con la comida peruana en Santiago clearly capitalize on their national origin, Santiago de Chile. Prácticas de identidad y espacio thus defying the ‘invisibility’ which often charac- de la migración transnacional peruana” (CONICYT- terizes migrants in hostile societies. CHILE). The State's role, together with a group of private businesses, in the construction of a narrative of na- tional identity linked to food possesses special REFERENCES characteristics that enable us to reflect about the importance of National States in the construction Acosta E 2013. Mujeres migrantes cuidadoras en flu- of these narratives in globalized contexts. First, jos migratorios sur-sur y sur-norte: expectativas, Polis. Revista Lati- these narratives originate from a commercial inter- experiencias y valoraciones. noamericana 12: 35, 35–62. est, adopt the semantics of patrimonial policies http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/S0718-65682013000200003. and are aimed at creating a new market. Secondly, Altamirano T 2000. Liderazgo y organizaciones de they make room for a transnational policy of iden- peruanos en el exterior: culturas transnacionales e tity construction, which concerns itself with the imaginarios sobre el desarrollo. Fondo Editorial territorialization practices of Peruvian communi- PUCP, Lima. ties abroad. Anderson B 1993. Comunidades imaginadas: reflex- iones sobre el Origen y la Difusión del Nacional- This article shows how the public production of ismo. Fondo de Cultura Económica, México. food migration, anchored in a conception of na- APEGA/CEPLAN 2012. Gastronomía peruana al tional identity, results in a phenomenon of various 2021. Lineamientos para un programa de desar- dimensions: from the economic integration and rollo de la gastronomía peruana en el marco del transformation of urban landscapes to the influ- Plan Bicentenario. Centro nacional de Planeami- ence on recognition strategies and, above all, the ento Estratégico, Lima. Aragón J 2014. Los estudios políticos en el Instituto renewal of a narrative of national identity that is de Estudios Peruanos: cambios, continuidades y now being re-signified and re-appropriated posibilidades. In Tanaka M (ed). 50 años pensan- through the experience of transnational migration. do el Perú: una reflexión crítica, 239–272. IEP, Lima. Arjona Garrido Á & Checa J C 2007. Ethnic economy. Theories, concepts and new advances. Revista In- NOTES ternacional de Sociología 64: 45, 117–143. Barlösius E 2011. Soziologie des Essens: eine sozial- 1 Personal communication with Humberto Rod- und kulturwissenschaftliche Einführung in die Er- ríguez, Professor at the Department of Anthropology nährungsforschung. Beltz Juventa, Frankfurt. in Universidad Nacional Mayor San Marcos, Lima – Berg U 2005. ¿Enmarcando la «peruanidad»? La poé- September 15th 2013. tica y pragmática de un espectáculo público entre 2 In http://www.apega.pe/contenidoc/noticiasC4.html. los migrantes peruanos de Nueva Jersey. In Berg U 3 Official video:https://www.youtube.com/ & Paerregaard K (eds). El Quinto Suyo. Transna- watch?v=8joXlwKMkrk. cionalidad y formaciones diaspóricas en la mi- 4 On Chinese migration and food practices in Peru, gración peruana, 37–68. IEP, Lima. see Rodríguez (2006). Boas F 1987. Anthropology and modern life. Dover 5 The team was formed by anthropology students of Publications, New York. the Alberto Hurtado University, Santiago de Chile, un- Bruce J 2007. Nos habíamos choleado tanto. Psi- der the direction of the author of the present article. coanálisis y racismo. Fondo Editorial de la Univer- 6 Entrepreneur Gastón Acurio has recently opened sidad San Martín de Porres, Lima. some restaurants in big cities in the United States of Bruner E M 1986. Experience and its expressions. In America, supported by important investments and Turner V (ed). The anthropology of experience, marketing campaigns. Also, Martín Morales has at- 3–30. University of Illinois Press, Chicago. tracted the attention of lifestyle media to his relative- Cieraad I 2006. At home: an anthropology of domes- ly new restaurant in the Soho neighborhood of Lon- tic space. Syracuse University Press, New York. 240 Walter A. Imilan FENNIA 193: 2 (2015)
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