In a not-so-distant past, consumers sat down to three regular meals a day and snacked only in between meals: Eating was a pretty traditional, predictable behavior. In that bygone era, meals had culturally defined guardrails, passed down through generations, and mealtimes reflected rules telling us when meals should happen, who should be there, how we should act and what we should eat. Meals traditionally helped structure the day, providing focal points marking beginnings, endings and transitions.
Today, we live in an eating culture that’s in constant motion—modern eating styles are marked by fragmentation and an upending of tradition. We idealize three balanced meals but rarely eat that way. Planning, shopping and cooking is decentralized, and there are fewer rules about what to eat and drink—we’re much more comfortable with eating on the fly. Eating and drinking can happen anywhere and everywhere and at any time.