Intensive Mothering, Domestic Revivalism, and the Moral Economy of Food

• In Event: Family Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 10: Gender Roles and Ideologies

Abstract

In an era of industrialized food systems and convenience consumption, some U.S. mothers are turning toward gardening, canning, fermenting, and cooking “from scratch.” Drawing on twenty-one qualitative interviews with working and stay-at-home mothers, this paper examines how domestic food practices function as performances of intensive mothering and moral identity.
Building on scholarship on intensive mothering ideology and the moral economy of food, I argue that foodwork is not merely about nutrition but constitutes a key site of gendered identity-making and moral distinction. Mothers frame from-scratch cooking and food preservation as acts of care, responsibility, and protection, often expressing distrust of industrial food systems and concern about environmental sustainability. Providing “real” or “natural” food becomes central to demonstrating maternal devotion and safeguarding children’s bodies.
These practices also reflect a broader revival of domestic arts, extending maternal labor into artisanal and self-sufficient domains. Activities such as gardening, cheese-making, and fermenting blur the boundaries between leisure, craft, and obligation, allowing mothers to claim creativity and skill while reinforcing expectations of intensive care.
By situating foodwork within the cultural logics of intensive mothering and domestic revivalism, this study reveals how everyday domestic labor becomes a site where morality, environmental responsibility, and gendered expectations converge. Food practices operate as symbolic capital within mothering communities, shaping maternal worth and social distinction while reproducing the gendered burden of care.

Author

• Christina Carney, Wayne State University