Cooking in the urban kitchen: a photo-elicitation study exploring apartment living’s impacts on Belgian food practices

In response to growing urban populations, apartment living is becoming ubiquitous in cities. Apartments, however, are often built with small and restrictive kitchens. This plausibly discourages home food preparation and promotes reliance on the out-of-home food supply. Despite detrimental implications for public health, this topic is currently understudied. Hence, this study explored how apartment living influences food practices in two Belgian cities, Antwerp and Brussels. Adopting a qualitative descriptive approach, 23 diverse participants were interviewed face-to-face using photo-elicitation. Guided by international apartment design guidelines, data were analysed using framework analysis and categorised into six kitchen design themes: Kitchen size and layout, Kitchen fixtures and equipment, Storage for food and kitchen appliances, Ventilation, Suitability of construction materials, and Lighting. These captured how kitchen design facilitated or hindered food practices alongside coping strategies employed to navigate material and design constraints. Key differences were observed between renters and owner-occupiers in their capacities to address challenges. By capturing how apartment living impacts food practices, findings underscore the crucial interrelationships between urban housing conditions and dietary shifts. Findings should feed back to apartment design policies so that urban housing may better support health-promoting food practices.