The Economic Crisis and its Influence on the Food Habits and Customs of Ecuadorian Immigrants in Murcia

ntroduction: In recent years the impact of the economic crisis has modified the consumption habits and purchasing strategies of immigrants, who declare themselves hypersensitive to prices since they do not have sufficient resources to stock up on adequate food to cover their nutritional needs. Objective: To analyze whether the current economic crisis has influenced the access to food and eating habits of Ecuadorian immigrants in the Huerta de Europa (Murcia?Capital). Methodology: The research carried out was qualitative, in which a set of techniques and instruments very typical of this research paradigm were used. the methodology was based mainly on the use of techniques such as interviews and life stories. The present study was framed within the phenomenological perspective since it is intended to learn about a process and reality from the perspective of the informants. Results: Seventy-five percent of the informants owned residence and work permits, while the remaining 25% had Spanish nationality. Fifty percent of the informants received the contributory benefit also known as “unemployment”, 25% and 15% received social welfare benefits. 45% of those interviewed spend between 200 to 300 euros per month on food, which is not enough to cover their needs, so they are forced to resort to government aid and strategies to have easy access to food. Conclusions: The lack of employment, in addition to causing economic shortages, diminishes the quality of life of Ecuadorian immigrants, so they establish different strategies to “ration”, which forces them to modify their food purchase and consumption habits