< Previous Page

Australia’s love affair with the good old fashioned roast explained – it’s instinctive!

Visiting international anthropology expert Dr Lionel Tiger today revealed why Australians have an enduring love affair with the traditional family roast – our bodies have been designed to crave it.

New research released today reveals that 78% of Australians rate roast beef or lamb to be among their favourite all time meals and 86% say they look forward to roast lamb or beef when they are hungry.  Dr Tiger, Charles Darwin Professor of Anthropology at Rutgers University in New Jersey and author of The Pursuit of Pleasure, says this is our ancient instincts at work.

“A robust body of scientific evidence shows that as a species our decision to eat red meat led to a series of important advancements – our brains tripled in size, our social skills developed, as did our concept of community.  Our physiology has not changed since the hunter gatherer period and this is why we crave a portfolio of pleasures important to our survival then and pleasure today.  This primitive instinct is actually our taste buds reminding us of what our ancestors enjoyed hundreds of thousands of years ago,” he added.

The research, conducted in June, found that our nation’s collective cravings for a succulent lamb roast or searing BBQ steak are as strong as our desire for human touch, fresh air and companionship. All are basic human needs dictated to us by our physiological and sociological prehistory.

“All our present pleasures can be traced to their functional and biological origins.  It’s why we crave certain things including food.  We perceive and pursue pleasure because evolution programmed enjoyment into behaviours that are essential for the survival of our species.  Sex, food, smell and warmth - these are all sensual pleasures that have yielded advantages to man since the dawn of time,” commented Dr Tiger.

Does your mouth water at the aroma of a lamb roast in the oven?  No less than 84% of Australians said this was the case.  According to Dr Tiger this reaction is another primitive instinct.

“The taste buds, a survival tool, were formed in the era of the hunter-gatherer.  Simply put, distastefully bitter and sour flavours served to warn early humans away from unripe fruit or plants that might be poisonous.  A sweet taste was a signal that the fruit was ripe and safe,” said Dr Tiger.

“We crave red meat because when it is lean, like most of the meat in Australia is, it contains a wonderful bundle of nutrients – omega-3s, zinc, iron and vitamin B12 – all of which are important to our survival.  That’s why we like to be surrounded by the magnetic aroma of a roast lamb in the oven.  It’s why we are drawn to the barbecue with its primordial attention to the taste of smoke.  This primitive instinct is actually our taste buds reminding us of what’s good for us,” he added.

So is the Aussie tradition of families gathering to celebrate over roast beef or lamb really a modern day version of the ancient campfire around which our tribal ancestors shared the spoils of their hunt? 

“Very likely” thinks Dr Tiger.  “Still today 96% of those surveyed said they enjoy the experience of gathering together to carve up the family roast.  It’s a ritual reminiscent of the ancient campfires around which our tribal ancestors share the spoils of their hunt – a pleasure evolution has imprinted on our DNA.

So what is it that Australians find so attractive about the tradition of gathering for a roast on Sunday?  Top of the list is catching up on family news (72%), followed by enjoying good food (69%), enjoying good conversation (65%) followed by having the opportunity to talk about shared experiences and memories (63%).

So while we have evolved to eat and share food together, Dr Tiger says the research suggests our current eating habits may be working against what comes instinctively to us. 

“One in two Australians (48%) were found to eat alone half or more of the times they sit down to a meal.  And more than one third of Australians (37%) are preparing food ‘just for one’ about half or more of the times when cooking at home.  Eating alone represents a breakdown of man’s fundamental humanism and is something most people prefer not to do,” he said.

“The fact is we have evolved as hunters and gatherers.  This means for optimum health and happiness we need to understand ourselves as citizens of the Paleolithic and eat and exercise appropriately,” he added. This means reducing processed foods and increasing our intake of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seafood and lean red meat while exercising daily.

Highlights from the research exploring the instinctive relationship Australians have with food include:

Australian taste buds remember the campfires of old
No less than 86% of Australians rate the sound of sizzling steaks on the barbeque a great sound on a summer’s day.  Almost all Australians, 97%, enjoy food for the sheer pleasure of it.

Men more in tune with their primitive instincts
Interestingly the research found that Aussie men are more in tune with their primitive instincts than women.  Aussie men were found to be more likely than women to start up a conversation with an attractive member of the opposite sex (78% versus 64%), find themselves competing against others (79% versus 65%) and taking risks for potential gain (90% versus 79%) – all of which are instinctive behaviours essential to the survival of our species.