Value of Play with the Food
Play is an end in itself and implies the consumer having fun. Play allows for experimentation and the discovery of novelty. Children enjoy playing with their food, but adults may order them not to.
Some commercial snack foods currently targeted for inclusion in children’s lunch boxes encourage play e.g., by allowing biscuits and shaped slices of cheese and ham to be assembled in different ways.
As stringy cheese stick is also available that a child can pull at, shredding the cheese while eating it.
Eating shellfish, especially crustaceans such as crabs and lobsters which have not been dressed provides a socially acceptable opportunity for adults to play with their food.
The same might be said about eating spaghetti and cheese fondue; after all these do not represent the most efficient way of eating pasts and melted cheese, respectively.
Playing means improvising, and improvisation encourages learning.
Such learning can lead to increased involvement of a consumer with a particular product.
Consumers may pursue playful value by challenging the rules of the food marketer; on the other hand, marketers can sanction and encourage play, e.g., by suggesting that consumers customize dishes, such as adding fresh herbs to ready made soups.
Value of Play with the Food
