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Food represents identity, situated in place and time.
Given that, what and how one eats is fraught with deeply held emotion about rootedness and history. Preparing traditional recipes can, for example, represent national and ethnic pride and provide a common symbol of group cohesiveness and identity. Or it can mean transcending one's past by changing the recipe - like chopping papaya into a traditional apple pie. Whatever the meaning, consumers sense that the sensory qualities of food and its preparation provide a vital human connection in a world dominated by the logic of nonhuman technology. Marketers who understand that are prepared for the 21st century food and drink marketplace.