{"id":34967,"date":"2020-05-19T11:56:04","date_gmt":"2020-05-19T09:56:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ontranslation.es\/?p=34967"},"modified":"2024-01-08T12:25:19","modified_gmt":"2024-01-08T11:25:19","slug":"translation-for-food-e-commerce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ontranslation.es\/en\/translation-for-food-e-commerce\/","title":{"rendered":"Translation for food e-commerce sites: cultural issues beyond the public"},"content":{"rendered":"

Translating for food e-commerce sites is no easy task. Due to factors like the specificity of food, there are many difficulties to consider when translating an online food store.\u00a0Every culture has its diet<\/strong>, which we must take into account when translating an online food store\u2014or food e-commerce\u2014for another market.<\/p>\n

In this post, we explain all the points to consider to successfully translate online stores selling food products.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Regular food in one place, unknown and exotic in another<\/h2>\n

Food varies a great deal from country to country<\/strong>, and even between different regions. We don\u2019t need to look far to find an example:\u00a0Try ordering an Arbroath Smokie on the south coast and see how far you get.<\/a><\/p>\n

Climate, tradition and history all play a part in the food of a particular place.<\/strong> For example, soya has recently entered the European food market, but in many Asian countries this has been a staple for centuries.<\/p>\n

An example of this is tempeh, a plant-based \u201cmeat\u201d made from fermented soya beans. It has become all the rage recently thanks to the surge in popularity of plant-based diets. In Europe, this is almost a luxury product, as it can be fairly expensive.<\/strong>\u00a0However, in Indonesia, it is the main source of protein for poorer people<\/strong>, and can be found at ridiculously low prices at any street stand.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

That\u2019s why, before selling a product in a different country, we should analyse how it is consumed there.<\/strong> If we consider the previous example, selling tempeh dishes at a higher price in Indonesia may damage our image. Or, on the other hand, if we sell it at very low prices in Europe, our customers will suspect something is wrong.<\/p>\n

\"Packs<\/p>\n

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Frameworks and categorisation, because cultures tend to classify things differently<\/h2>\n

This point is particularly important for food e-commerce sites wanting to sell cross-border. We must take into account the target culture when categorising in a translation for an e-commerce food website.<\/strong> We can\u2019t just copy our website\u2019s structure for another market.<\/p>\n

Categories aren\u2019t universal.\u00a0Every culture creates its own mental brands that include (or exclude) certain concepts.<\/strong> So, according to authors like Lakoff, humans organise the world through metaphors and create groups or categories using consensual relationships, or mental frameworks.<\/p>\n

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