Food and Culture in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Grains and Other Starchy Foods : $17.40 (10.4%)
Dairy: $17.77 (10.6%)
Meat, Fish and Eggs $54.22 (32.4%)
Fruits, Vegetables and Nuts $28.18 (16.8%)
Condiments $8.75 (5.2%)
Snacks and Desserts $21.74 (13%)
Prepared Food $2.47 (1.5%)
Beverages $16.90 (10.11%)

This particular family in Bosnia consists of 5 people, 3 children and 2 adults. They have a small kitchen and dining room, however most of the products that they consume are fresh and don't require a lot of cooking. They roughly consume 90% of fresh products and the products are very simple and traditional. Their weekly consumption mostly consists of meat, fish and eggs (32.4%) and grains (10.4%). They also consume a lot of bottled beverages and dairy products to make their own home-made pastries and cakes.

The first thing that stand out from the picture is the amount of bread, fruits and vegetables. There's also a lot of pastry-associated ingredients on the table such as sugar, pastry sheets, flour and "jufka" (thin pastry sheets). Although protein products aren't shown in the picture, the family spend 32.4% of its weekly spending on proteins, primarily ground beef, chicken, veal and eggs. Surprisingly, this family doesn't consume any pork. It is also apparent that families in Bosnia love homemade and fresh food. They consume 15 lb of bread and 4 pounds of potatoes with over 20 pounds worth of fruits. From the amount of bread that they have, bread must be a staple food that is served with every meal in Bosnia. They also consume a lot of fruits, especially tangerines, apples and oranges. They have over 8.8 lb of tangerines, and it is possible that they cook some of their protein with tangerines as it gives a fresh sweet and sour flavoring. They barely consume any frozen food, as they only spend 1.5% of their spending on prepared food. By looking at the small refrigerator, it can be concluded that they eat fresh food that doesn't require any refrigeration. They also barely have any spices at all. They only cook with oil, salt and sugar. Their condiments are very limited and they flavor their protein with vegetables and cheese. The family doesn't consume a lot of processed snacks and desserts. The main snack that they consume is raisins. To satisfy their sweet desire, they make their own cake using fresh ingredients. However, they love beverages, especially sodas such as orange soda and coca cola. They drink water, but not as much as sweet drinks such as blueberry and grape juice and orange juice. In comparison, they only drink 2.1 qt of water and over 10 qt of processed fruit-flavored sodas and juices. Also, all the products that they consume are locally and freshly produced. The only imported products that they have   are snacks, desserts and drinks.