Núm. 25, enero-junio (2014)

Written in 1991, declared as the year of the Church's Social Doctrine, on the centenary of Rerum Novarum, this encyclical letter aims to demonstrate the fruitfulness of the Leonine document so as to contribute to the development of Catholic Social Doctrine, as well as to analyze certain historical facts in order to be able discern the new demands for evangelization. The key idea of this document is economy, and the hundred years old problem of ideologies.

A strong tendency related to food production that cannot fail to be addressed is the ability to guarantee "animal welfare." The significantly diverse cultural beliefs and values about the nature of animals influence the way they are treated. Cultures differ in the priority they give to various aspects of animal welfare, such as basic health and nutrition or the elimination of pain and suffering. However, the perception of animals as "sentient beings", backed by modern science, which is beginning to spread through the scientific and veterinary education, gives new impetus to animal welfare surveillance (FAO, 2009).

Studies on quality, always mention that in order to do things right, they must be done in a clean and orderly way. Japan has a recipe for achieving clean spaces, improve order and increase productivity in their factories, called the 5's. This concept should not seem strange today for any organization, unfortunately it is. This philosophy began in Toyota in the 60s. The goal was to improve productivity by achieving a better workplace; the means were well organized work places, more orderly and cleaner. The method's effectiveness was proven and has been adopted in offices, shops, hospitals, schools and other places as a way to increase the efficiency with very good results, especially in terms of saving time and costs.

This article addresses the issue of excellence as one of the qualities to be developed during professional training, in order to later apply it to the workplace. This is a pedagogical discourse that aims to highlight the importance of this specifically human attribute; and point out that this is a personal decision involving free will. It springs from the idea that human development is influenced by family and school, and continues to develop further in life as we learn and assimilate a set of values, habits and skills, molding our personality. This will acquire special significance when faced by diverse challenges at the workplace.

In order to understand the concept of sustainable gastronomy, we must first discuss the concepts of sustainability, sustainable business, food systems and gastronomical tourism. We will focus first on the actions for sustainability in general, and then analyze companies in favor of a sustainable cuisine, which will lead us to the full interpretation of sustainable gastronomy as a system that benefits various stakeholders: the final consumer, the producer, the economy, the environment and global health.

Somehow, the various demographic and social changes during the last decades, such as new types of families and their organization, the incorporation of women into the formal labor market and the social stratum established on the basis of family income, are changing the allocation of household tasks such as purchase, preparation, and consumption of food, factors that play a role in the prevalence of obesity in Mexico. This relationship between purchase, food preparation and the prevalence of obesity in Mexican women has greatly increased in the last two decades. This condition can be classified as a serious public health problem, and is associated with the onset of chronic diseases including cardiovascular problems. The object of this article is to describe the relation-ship between gestational diabetes and the lifestyle of women responsible for the household food process, as well as the structural change in family organization when women are occupationally involved with family expenses.

An introduction is presented in which the author discusses the main themes of this issue, including obesity, Christian Social Doctrine, and animal welfare.