Men, Meat and the More than Human World

Man Food is a project looking at men, protein and the environment. It’s been set up in response to claims that current levels of meat consumption across the world aren’t sustainable. Intensive livestock farming contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, puts land and water resources under pressure, and is connected to antimicrobial resistance (superbugs). But most of us don’t make links between what we put on our plate and what’s happening in the wider environment. Why do we eat what we eat? What role does sustainability play alongside taste, health, cost and convenience? How might we have different conversations about food and about our relationship to the environment?

Researchers from the University of Southampton are working with Windmill Hill City Farm, The Matthew Tree Project and Knowle West Health Park, to see what happens when we come together to talk about men and protein. And we’re not just interesting in talking, but in getting stuck in – in cooking and eating together, in seeing food from different perspectives, and in using creative methods like photography and video to explore the world around us.

To do this, we’ll be running a series of workshops in Bristol, with groups of men from around the city. We’ll also be appointing an artist in residence to work alongside the project, to respond to these workshops and to the broader ideas we’re exploring. This work will be presented at At-Bristol, as part of Healthy City Week, and at other pop up events across the city.

Man Food is funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council through the Connected Communities Programme.