ABSTRACT
Onemightwellexpectthatthehistoryofdietwould beoneoflong,steadyevolution.Infact,itis nowclearerthaneverthatitismarkedbyadistinctbreakinthe19thcentury.Between1800and 1860themainEuropeancountriesbegantokeepstatisticswhichweremoreaccurate,morereliable,and whichrelatedtotheavailabilityoffood(andsometimestoitsactualconsumption)forthewholeof thepopulation.Furthermore,thisdevelopmentcoincidedwithimportantquantitativeandstructural changesindiet.Boththesourcesandthenatureof thequestionstobeexaminedchanged;aroundtheend ofthe18thandthebeginningofthe19thcentury theperspectiveofthehistorianchanges.Bothbeforeandafterthisdateanagreementemergesona certainnumberofconclusions,andtheseconstitute thegeneralframeworkofourresearch.
