(Des)haciendo el género, resolviendo comidas: un análisis del trabajo y cuidados relacionados con la alimentación entre las personas mayores en España

Based on an ethnographic analysis of the food itineraries of a group of elderly people in Spain, this study examines the ways in which they manage their meals, considering, on the one hand, the effects of growing socio-economic constraints and, on the other, possible gender differences. The main objective is to elucidate whether both issues are at the root of certain forms of food insecurity among poorer groups and particularly among women. We show that tasks related to food provisioning, selection, preparation, distribution, and consumption favours both gender interactions and asymmetries and, although they may vary over time depending on life circumstances, they are incorporated by people according to the normative frameworks that in each society produce the sexual division of labour and areas of responsibility. We conclude that in contexts of crisis, being/having been the person responsible for family meals places women and men in a position of greater or lesser vulnerability concerning access to and consumption of healthy, safe, and sufficient food.