Food from Nowhere: Complicating Cultural Food Colonialism to Understand Matcha as Superfood

Abstract

health-conscious eaters abstract | Matcha has served as the focal point of the Japanese tea ceremony, chanoyu, for hundreds of years.More recently, this powdered green tea has arrived on the shores of North America as one of the latest superfood "discoveries."Like many of the other superfoods that have captured the attention of the West, matcha's newfound global popularity reflects what philosopher Lisa Heldke calls "cultural food colonialism."However, while many ethnic foods and superfoods are viewed and judged through the lenses of authenticity and exoticness, matcha has seen an erasure of its cultural identity since its arrival in the United States.This essay extends Lisa Heldke's concept of cultural food colonialism by applying it to a new population: health-conscious eaters, writers, and marketers in the United States.By discussing matcha largely in the context of its health and nutritional benefits while ignoring its cultural ties to Japan, this population is engaging in a novel form of cultural food colonialism.

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