Fast or slow food? Explaining trends in food-related time in the Netherlands, 1975–2005

Abstract

The current study analysed trends in the time spent preparing and consuming food and the frequency of outsourcing (going out for dinner and take-out) in the Netherlands from 1975 to 2005. We investigated differences between trends on week and weekend days and for different socio-demographic groups. Analyses using pooled data from the Dutch Time Use Survey (N¼13,421) revealed a downward trend in minutes preparing and consuming food and an increase in outsourcing. This overall downward trend could not be accounted for by controlling for structural changes (e.g. increased labour force participation). Moreover, we found that the decrease in time was stronger for days during the week than during the weekend. And we found that the trends differed by household type and sex: e.g. for food preparation there is an overall decrease, except for men with a partner; they showed an increase in time spent preparing food.