Paper short abstract:

Ghanaian plates seem to be undergoing major changes. Western inspired meals and taste become a part of status games particularly among the emerging middle class. Traditional and new ways of eating are engaged in a dialectical conflict negotiating health, modernity and social status.

Paper long abstract:

Ghana, a former West African British colony, boasts what can be called a "typical West African cuisine". Yet despite widely acknowledged attachment to traditional foods, seen as part of local and ethnic identity, Ghanaian plates have been undergoing major transformations. In this paper I would like to present how growing availability and demand for Western food in Ghana are correlated with the emergence of new gustatory preferences and lifestyles, in particular among the aspiring Ghanaian middle class. Such factors as rapidly evolving labour market offering more formal employment, growing economy and close international ties between the country and western-based diaspora seem to contribute to the change of both everyday and celebratory eating patterns. Such changes are visible even in Wa, Upper West, the most remote and poverty-stricken region of Ghana. Tuo zaafi, traditional bland corn meal porridge is popularly being replaced with rice with tomato stew and egg which is not just quicker to make but has become a sign of modernity and progress, inasmuch as using Maggi cubes. Relative affluence becomes a signifier of being able to eat "tasty" food - one that provides intense gustatory experience. Furthermore, wedding and funeral meals are often no longer a family responsibility. Catering businesses are offering a simple monetary exchange for elaborate and modern-looking buffets. Everyday choice "what to eat" becomes a dialectical statement navigating modernity, health choices, ethnic identities and socio-economic status.