Between fusion and ceremonialization. An exploration of Latin American and Caribbean migrants’ foodways in cosmopolitan Almere, The Netherlands

In this study, we analyze and discuss the changing foodways of multiple generations of Latin American and Caribbean migrants in Almere, The Netherlands. We reveal the complex social and cultural dynamics underlying the ways these migrants procure, process, prepare, and consume food to maintain and kindle the ties with the place of origin, to weave meaning as a bridge toward the host country and other migrant communities, and to redefine identities and create a sense of belonging in the cosmopolitan social milieux of Almere. Amidst these dynamics and the plethora of idiosyncratic adaptations to the new context, we focus on the processes of fusion and ceremonialization taking place as migrants rebuild their livelihoods and adapt and create new dishes, meanings, and forms of socialization around food and across generations. We conclude by suggesting that complex patterns of interpenetration of the traditional with the modern, the local with the global, and the self with the other, take place and are shaped into food and dishes that sustain changing identities and lifeways on the backdrop of a cosmopolitan city.