The emerging food pics fad

Is it just me that’s a little slow on the uptake of new fads. Would you know it – it seems there is an increase in the number of people uploading food pictures onto the Internet. A quick check of Google’s search volume index confirms the obvious. Yes, I know it’s been said before that a lot of people use social media to tell us about the sandwich they just ate. But, now, we also get to see the sandwich.

So is there an explanation to this latest fad? The answer is yes. But before that here are some staggering numbers to consider.

It is estimated that 2.5 billion people in the world today have a digital camera. If the average person snaps 150 photos this year that would be a staggering 375 billion photos. This year alone people will upload over 70 billion photos to Facebook. And Facebook’s photo collection has a staggering 140 billion photos. Also, at least once a month, 52% of people take photos with their mobile phones; another 19% upload those photos to the web.

And the the food pics - People are documenting their lives, or at least the gustatory portion of it. There are other reasons, too. Sometimes, it’s to celebrate the completion of a dish or a special occasion. Some are photographing “food art.”

The graphic provides a breakdown of some of the motivations for food picture uploads.