Ecovillages are intentional and experimental communities that embrace ecological values and green consumption practices which result in a sustainable lifestyle considered the best response to the global ecological crisis. The main ecovillages' goal is to regenerate social and natural environments through communal living, refounding a dimension of proximity with the land and the natural environment. Environmental ecology is primarily pursued focusing on self-sufficient food production and alternative farming methods, such as permaculture and organic farming practices. The use of these methods represents a way to criticize the economic logic of equivalent exchange, preferring instead a culture of gifting and the establishment of relations of reciprocity and solidarity on a small scale. In this way not just a particular and specific food style is put in practice, but an holistic view of living, characterized by a new political-aesthetics in which pleasure, conviviality and restoring relationships of trust and sharing become essential in the pursuit of personal satisfaction and in the construction of taste, following a process of individual and environmental renaturalization. The article is based on ethnographic data related to my ongoing doctoral research on the topics of sustainability and food self-sufficiency in Italian ecovillages. The research adopts a qualitative methodology, involving participant observation and a period of field work in the ecovillages located in Tuscany and in the South of Italy in Apulia region. These ecovillages are part of the Italian Ecovillage Network that interacts with the more broad international web called Global Ecovilaage Network.Social harmony is achieved through taste, by which we mean a developed aesthetic sensibility. This is not just a state of mind: a harmony of the sensuous and the spiritual demands full participation of all aspects of human perception, since the sensuous is as much body as the spiritual consciousness. (Berleant, 2005, p. 31) The grammar of food is a privileged key to interpret and highlight the complex nature of social interactions and social activities both in preliterate societies and in modern societies (Ashley, 2004, p. 6). The strong symbolic and cultural value of preparation and consumption of food -growing, harvesting, processing, cooking, eating -is widely stressed in the socioanthropological literature that often focus on food practices as a crucial element of social distinction and as a fundamental principle around which social relationships are built and articulated (Levi-Strauss

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A high incidence of foodborne diseases occurs in the home setting because consumers adopt inappropriate preparation, consumption, and storage procedures. The present study applies an ethnographic approach to identify inadequate practices that could increase the incidence of foodborne diseases. Techniques related to the ethnographic approach were used: participant observation, kitchens mapping, collection of photographic material, and informal interviews in natural settings. A sample of 14 families was involved through the snowball sampling technique. This study identifies habitual practices and routine behaviour as the main risk factors. The inadequacies most frequently encountered related to the microbiological risks are incorrect handwashing, the presence in the kitchen spaces of objects unrelated to food preparation, the improper use of dishcloths and sponges, the inappropriate washing of utensils and food, the incorrect storage of food in the fridge, and the presence of children and pets without an adequate administration of the spaces. The practices that can expose consumers to chemical risk include food preservation through unsuitable containers/materials, food overcooking, and detergents contamination. The data underline the need to implement communicative and training interventions that give precise and targeted indications about correct safety practices in the home setting.

Ecovillages have become a phenomenon as communities focused on shared goals of sustainable living and ecological engagement grew worldwide. Within ecovillages sustainability is not meant just in material terms, but also as a specific way of interacting with nature, involving an ethics of closeness and care. The natural environment is considered as an active agent of intimate emotions. On this basis, this article focuses on the connection between multispecies ethnography and the human/non-human encounter that takes places within these communities, pointing out how it contributes to the production of new relational subjectivities.

PurposeBlogs have become a widespread means for the exchange of information, where topics regarding food and nutrition feature with increasing prominence. In the sphere of online risk communication, food bloggers are relevant actors because they pass on practical information about food preparation and crucial phases of food safety (preservation, handling and cooking of food). Moreover, they have the ability to reach user networks in a rapid and capillary manner. This paper focusses on the figure of the food blogger, the context in which he/she acts and his/her perceptions and type of communication of food safety issues.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative and qualitative data were collected using an online survey and an online training programme was implemented to actively engage food bloggers in the creation of food risk communication.FindingsThis study showed that a common reason for the creation of a food blog is the love for food and the practice of caring for themselves and others through food. Food bloggers feel responsible for taking care of their users by providing accurate information related to health and safety. Communication via blogs is based on the shared experiences of users, thereby representing a type of knowledge that is closer to direct practice. Interacting with these new actors in the field of food is important for institutions traditionally committed to promoting public health and food safety.Originality/valueThe research stands out for its innovative purpose of using the network of food blogs as a communication tool that overcomes the traditional linear communication model (top-down) to experiment with a new participatory model and spread to Internet users good practices related to food management.