Published open access in Critical Public Health in May 2026. Header image credit: Shirley Hottier.

Citation: Rao, M., Beltramo, B., Sadler, C. R., & Youssef Abboud, K. (2026). Taking cognisance of women’s domestic foodwork in the debate on ultra-processed foods. Critical Public Health, 36(1), 2664922. https://doi.org/10.1080/09581596.2026.2664922

Abstract:

This commentary discusses contemporary debates on ultra-processed foods (UPFs) by foregrounding the largely invisible domain of domestic foodwork. While public health discourse has centred on the nutritional and epidemiological implications of UPF consumption, far less attention has been directed toward the social organisation of the labour required to adopt alternatives. We argue that policy measures designed to reduce UPF consumption through behaviour change frequently rest on the implicit assumption that consumers will readily absorb the additional demands of procuring, preparing, and managing minimally processed meals. Such measures risk intensifying the physical, cognitive, and emotional labour disproportionately carried by women within families, thereby reinforcing existing gender, class, and racial inequalities. Drawing on feminist scholarship and cross-context evidence, we propose the development of policy approaches that address UPF consumption while recognising the gendered organisation of foodwork. These include strengthening public food environments, promoting gender-sensitive and inclusive food literacy initiatives, supporting community-based provisioning, incentivising healthier convenience foods, and regulating corporate strategies that drive UPF consumption. By re-centring foodwork within UPF debates, the paper shows how just and effective interventions require moving beyond individual behaviour change to address the structural conditions shaping diets and domestic labour.