This edited volume serves as an overview and introduction to the conceptual apparatus of Norbert Elias for newcomers, while also outlining current research within the Eliasian school of sociology. An Eliasian or figurational approach foregrounds process, is sensitive to long-term historical development and changing power relations and is methodologically diverse. Elias's work is now found across academic disciplines and this volume contains contributions by sociologists, anthropologists, business and management scholars, and those working at the interface of sociology and human geography. Instead of simply highlighting the distinctiveness of the school vis-à-vis other theoretical traditions, this volume outlines how Eliasian inspired work can contribute to important debates on the future of food across academic disciplines.

John Lever is Reader in Sustainable and Resilient Communities at Manchester Metropolitan University.

Jennifer Smith Maguire is Professor of Cultural Production and Consumption at Sheffield Business School, Sheffield Hallam University, UK.

Adrianna Kapek-Goodridge is Doctoral Candidate in the Department of Management, University of Huddersfield, UK.