Food Acculturation Pattern of International students in Halifax

Abstract

International students experience lots of food related challenges when they migrate from their home country to a new country. One such food related challenge international students in Halifax experience is dietary changes, due to the lack of availability of their cultural foods. Consequently, the aim of this study is to assess international students' food acculturation patterns in Halifax, in order to explore whether (un)availability of international students' cultural foods influences whether they maintain their culture of origin, conform to the culture of their host, or integrate within their host and home country's culture. A quantitative methodology is employed in this study, in order to examine the relationship between (un)availability of international students' cultural foods and the food acculturation pattern of international students in Halifax. The results of this study show that international students’ food acculturation patterns are dependent on the (un)availability of their cultural foods in Halifax. However, the experiences of (un)availability of cultural foods by international students are influenced by: the medium through which international students' cultural foods are available to them: in Halifax grocery stores, ethnic stores or ethnic restaurants in Halifax and where international students live in Halifax (either off-campus or on-campus). Factors that might influence the acculturation patterns of international students, based on the availability and accessibility of their cultural foods are gender and origin.