The local and the global: exploring traits of homogeneity and heterogeneity in European food cultures

One type of boundary rarely explored in international marketing are the cultural boundaries dividing Europe into regions with individual cultural backgrounds and different consumption patterns. This article explores information about such patterns of food consumption based on information from a database originating from a 1989 pan-European lifestyle survey comprising around 20 000 people in 15 European countries divided into 79 regions. The degree of homogeneity in the different nation-states and regions was analysed. The article contributes with new, specific empirical evidence about Europeans' food-related behaviour and attitudes and provides culture-based explanations and interpretations of observed differences and similarities. It is shown that nation/language boundaries still have a strong impact on European food cultures.