A sociological research on the changes occuring in Turkish food culture (Istanbul example)

Food is not just the food we need to survive its also the most important and vital part of human life with its social and cultural characteristics and has been the center of our lives and daily lives throughout history. In recent years with the rapidty of urban life and the effects of globalization, popular culture and mass culture have begun to be observed in eating and drinking habits. In this context, the cultural effects of globalization have also manifested themselves in Turkish food culture. Globalization has brought the concept of "glocalization", which can be summarized as "think globally, act locally" and its examples have taken their places in the kitchens. At the same time, localization movement comes with globalization and Turkish cuisine culture is also experiencing a movement in this direction. Turkish food culture has developed and enriched in line with the societies, different cultures, the lands and geography it has interacted with throughout history, and the foods always have had symbolic meanings such as their preparation, presentation, eating styles and order, and preparation times. These social and cultural aspects of food necessitated to consider it sociologically. For this reason, especially in the 20th century, with the increase in the effects of globalization, studies on food culture and food sociology have increased. This research is based on the symbolic interactionism approach, which considers the symbolic aspect of food. The aim of the study is to reveal the effects of cultural concepts such as globalisation and popular culture on Turkish food culture through expert interviews. The research was conducted using qualitative research method and in-depth interview technique with 12 expert participants. As a result of these interviews, it was concluded that popular culture and globalisation have effects on Turkish food culture and eating and drinking habits and that these effects have changed Turkish food culture and eating and drinking habits. It was understood that the participants perceived popular culture and its effects more negatively and globalisation and its effects more positively. As a result of the research, the necessity of developing a more responsible gastronomy understanding that also benefits from different disciplines has emerged.