To what extent have professional Chefs shaped culinary cultures and evaluate their influence on the current Hospitality Industry
The 1990’s has set many patterns for change in terms of the emphasis on food (Foskett, Ceserani and Kinton, 2003). Chef Paul Bocusse of France, is said to be responsible for the defining and promotion of nouvelle cuisine in the 1970/80’s and since then, there have been a number of fashion trends that attempt to define taste (Drouard, 2003), one of them is the celebrity chef. The essay aims to explore the extent to which professional chefs have shaped culinary culture, how far they have influenced contemporary food habits and their impact on the current hospitality industry. The essay will consider the changing lifestyle of the consumer and how celebrity chefs may have impacted consumer behaviour and attitude, through their television programmes, celebrity endorsements and various campaigns.
Mintel (2002:4) describes celebrity chefs as “those who are well known amongst the general public for their appearance on British television”. Frewin (2005) points out that not only do celebrity chefs achieve fame and fortune through television, but also through their endorsements, cookbooks and restaurants. Celebrity chefs have increasingly been seen on television since the 1990’s and interestingly Babilonia (2004) points out that more than eighteen hours per week are devoted to cookery programmes on British TV, thus emphasising the popularity of such programmes.
Cookery programmes have generated great interest amongst the public, and are shown at peak times throughout the day. However it must be emphasised that although there is a greater interest in the programmes, consumers are cooking less than ever before, thus showing a paradox (Babilonia, 2004). This questions whether such programmes really educate people on how to cook or whether they are more for entertainment purposes (Caraher, Dixon, Lang and Hill, 1998).
Mintel (2002) researched that only a small percentage of people who watch cookery programmes learnt from them. It was also found that one in five people engaged with the cookery on a practical level, and only one in seven bought a new ingredients after watching a programme. This shows that although celebrity chefs are in the position to influence culinary culture, their effect on consumers looks to be marginal.
Ferguson (2003) points out that celebrity chefs have demystified cooking and introduced consumers to a whole new range of foods. (Fort, 2003) has the opinion that celebrity chefs may entice viewers to be excited by the recipes and influence them to buy new ingredients, however they don’t look to be intriguing consumers to actually involve themselves practically with the cooking. Witer (2004) explains that through celebrity chefs, consumers have learnt that cooking can be fun and creative, however whether they actually learn to cook or have the time to do so, is another matter.
Fosket et al (2003) highlight that over the years attitudes to food have changed dramatically and busy lifestyles for example, have meant there are now more people ‘eating on the hoof’ and ‘grazing’ therefore less people cooking at home. This relates well to Mintels (2002) finding that the UK has the worst diet in Europe (most obese) and some people consider that television more than any other medium is affecting the food eaten (Gayner, 2005). In this way, professional chefs are having negative impact on culinary culture. Instead of educating consumers, they are de-skilling them and encouraging them to buy convenience products for example the sorts of meals they may cook on their shows (Mintel, 2002).
Gayner (2005) emphasises that there are various other factors which have had a profound impact on the number of people who cook at home, these include, the increased individualisation of eating habits, an increase in single parent families, long working hours and the rise of the ‘cash-rich, time-poor’ consumer. Mintel (2002) notes that there has been a decline in traditional meal times, family arrangements and formality, this could be linked to the reason why consumers hardly engage in cookery programmes and often view them as entertainment shows.
Interestingly Glover (2006) notes that the sales of convenience foods grew to £11 billion in 2001, and have been projected to grow by 33% in the next ten years. He goes on to explain that these figures add up to a ‘chubby’ future for British consumers, but not for domestic cookery. Travel-Quest (2006) found that the more the British public come to rely on convenience foods, the greater the apparent fascination for cookery programmes, and by extension celebrity chefs. It is interesting to note, how on one hand viewership of celebrity chef shows is extremely high, however on the other hand, consumers are relying more and more on convenience foods. As a result cooking skills continue to further ‘die –out’ (Mintel, 2002).
Mintel (2002) points out that the role of the celebrity chef has changed consumer attitudes, in the way that people demand more and receive more. Keogh (2005) explains that celebrity chefs continually elevate standards and create a sense of excitement and pleasure when it comes to food. Liyanage (2004) agrees and has the opinion that professional chefs are introducing consumers to a range of foods and exotic ingredients, although they are not succeeding in passing on skills to the consumer. Thus it can be said that celebrity chefs look to be effective in exposing consumers to new ideas/tastes and broadening cultural trends in this way, however they do not convincingly look to be shaping culinary culture in terms of teaching consumers how to cook.
It must be put across that, the sets of people who watch celebrity chef programmes do so for different reasons. While some watch as a source of entertainment, others engage in the programmes and absorb new cooking skills and recipes through them (Ferguson, 2003). This may be related to the individual celebrity chef, their way of instructing and the market segments they aim to attract. Delia Smith for example in her programmes is very precise and more instructional, and the majority of consumers who watch her shows do so to learn (Barkham, 2005). Thus it can be said that Delia Smith is one of the more influential celebrity chefs who has succeeded to some extent in shaping culinary culture. To further support this Barkham (2005) highlights that phrases such as ‘Delia power’ and ‘Doing a Delia’ are now commonly used , which shows the power and impact she has had on the consumer.
Barkham and Gillan (2004) researched that one in four (27%) adults say they are much more confident about cooking since they have started to watch celebrity chefs on television. This shows that celebrity chefs to a small degree are shaping consumer attitudes, however again there is no strong evidence which suggests that celebrity chefs are significantly influencing consumer behaviour in regard to cooking culture. On the other hand, however according to a Mintel report (2002) almost six in ten consumers feel that their cooking habits have been influenced by the legion of celebrity chefs, while only 20% said that they had not changed what meals they had cooked in the last five years. This portrays a mixed view, and to some extent suggests that celebrity chefs may be having effect on consumer behaviour.
Babilonia (2004) points out that the few viewers who do tend to engage with cookery programmes on a practical level are those from higher, more educated social groups for whom cooking tends to have important social connections when entertaining family, friends or business colleagues. These consumers can afford to buy the exotic ingredients often used by the chefs, which suggests that it is usually the wealthy consumers for whom the celebrity chef has any real influence (Cormac, 2003). This can be linked to the way in which the programmes are sometimes referred to as ‘gastro-pornography’, a window into a world that many people are excluded from, one they can fantasise about but are unable to experience and thus it remains remote from their everyday culture, which may mean that celebrity chefs are partly to blame for accelerating ‘food poverty’ among the less wealthy (Keogh, 2005).
More evidence of celebrity chefs having influence on the public is the way in which they use the marketing tool of product endorsement. Product endorsement occurs when a celebrity allows their name or image to be used to validate a product, brand or service to enhance its standard in the marketplace (Tullio, 2004).It was found that one is ten people had bought cookware or a gadget used by a celebrity chef (Mintel, 2002), which highlights a small influence on consumer behaviour.
It is important to point out that although celebrity chefs do not look to be influencing culinary culture as such, there is evidence to suggest they influence peoples attitudes regarding certain issues. Barton (2004) suggests that they have become an example of the power of a few to influence the opinions of many. Jamie Oliver for example has been named most influential force in the UK catering industry (News.bbc 2005) via his ‘School Dinners’ campaign which persuaded government to put an extra £280 million into school meals (Menu Magazine, 2005) thus signifying the power and impact of such an individual.
With an increase of female employment, fewer children learn to cook from their mothers (Bowlby, Gregory and Mckie, 1999) and with a lack of cooking education in schools, culinary culture is said to be fast fading out (Drouard, 2003). Celebrity chefs are however seen to be doing their part for schools and encouraging youngsters to take more of an interest in the hospitality industry. Trusts such as the ‘Adopt A School Trust’ (AAST) and similarly ‘The Roux Scholarship’ rely on chefs to visit schools and deliver practical workshops to develop young chefs. In this way it can be said that celebrity chefs are playing their part in trying to influence recruitment in the hospitality industry (British Council, 2005). Babilonia (2004) found that youngsters in secondary schools are putting in hard work to follow Gordan Ramsay’s footsteps, which shows an influence on student’s perceptions of the hospitality industry.
Gayner (2005) feels that celebrity chefs have almost crystallised the fact that the food industry is bigger and better than its ever been. A UK report by Barclays has linked celebrity chefs with the boom in foodservice start-ups and the number of new businesses being set up in the catering sector. In this way, professional chefs look to be quite influential. The report also evidenced that celebrity chefs have made eating out more trendy, with about a fifth of consumers now eating out more than once a week (Witer, 2004), which further emphasises how they may have impacted consumer behaviour and attitudes. Celebrity chefs have taken advantage of the fact that people are becoming more adventurous in their eating habits and as a result, a number of professional chefs have opened restaurants (Michelin Starred) which are said to be extremely successful (News.bbc, 2005). This further emphasises their influence in the hospitality industry and on consumers who choose to dine at their restaurants.
To conclude it can be said that celebrity chefs appear to have the power to influence ideas of taste and consumer attitudes, in terms of introducing consumers to new ingredients and foods. However in regard to educating consumers about cooking, their impact appears limited (one in seven who view programmes, influenced to try). The majority of celebrity chef programmes are often viewed as entertainment and do not appear to be instructional. The essay has shown that although celebrity chefs are in the position to transform culinary cultures, they are not succeeding in inspiring people ‘back into the kitchen’.
As has been evidenced, professional chefs appear to be helping open people’s mind to the enjoyment that can be derived from food and in this way they look to be increasing consumer knowledge and attitudes to forming ideas of taste. However in regard to cooking as has been emphasised they are unable to change consumer behaviour and thus are unable to in most cases engage them practically.
Overall the essay has shown that the impact of celebrity chefs on culinary culture appears to be limited, although there is evidence which suggests certain groups are being influenced by them and do engage with the programmes on a practical level. The essay has also shown that, while celebrity chefs are popular, their programmes appear to be seen as entertainment in many cases rather than a source of information, however this can be put down to factors such as busy consumer lifestyles and the individualisation of eating habits. Although some parts of the research have shown that a proportion of viewers do engage with the programmes on a practical level, other evidence has shown negative impact in the way that today there is a strong trend towards greater reliance on prepared foods and celebrity chefs may be a force driving such behaviour.
Tools such as celebrity endorsement are also used by celebrity chefs which try and encourage consumers to buy certain products, this however affects consumer behaviour as opposed to culinary habits
In terms of the hospitality industry, it can be said that celebrity chefs do have an influence on the sector as evidenced by examples such as healthier schools meals, younger generations wanting to pursue a career in catering and celebrity chef restaurants becoming more popular.