There is currently a heated debate about the role of food processing, and the science and technology that supports it, with many food activists strongly opposing any kind of processed foods. We acknowledge that there are problems associated with the modern diet in many developed countries, such as diet-related diseases ( e.g. , obesity, hypertension, heart disease, and cancer), pollution, animal care, and sustainability. However, we argue that the application of science and technology to foods must play a role in addressing these problems and that food processing does bring many benefits to society, such as increasing the diversity, quality, and accessibility of foods, while reducing their costs. If societies overall goal is to improve the quality, sustainability, and healthfulness of the food supply, then it is important to acknowledge both the positive and negative roles that food processing can play, and then to use science and technology wisely as one of the tools available to address these issues.

Since the term first appeared, food porn has typically referred to watching others cook on television or gazing at unattainable dishes in glossy magazines without actually cooking oneself. This forum seeks to revisit this notion of food porn that is mostly taken for granted in both popular and scholarly literature. It offers a brief perspective of the appearance and use of the term food porn to examine how it came to be a term used mostly by commentators rather than by people actively engaged in the world of cooking. Practitioners (chefs and a food television producer) and academics address whether or not food porn exists, what shape it might take, what purpose it might serve, and/or what usefulness it might have, showing that these contentious issues are more complex than the ease with which the term is used might let on.