Victorian food

Cheese display, Boscombe shop

During Victorian times the diet of most people began to improve. The invention of the steam ship, and of refrigeration, meant that meat, fish and fruit could be imported from overseas quite cheaply. By the 1870s the family of a skilled worker might have meat or fish every day as well as fruit, vegetables, bread, butter, eggs and jam. Middle class people could enjoy a variety of meat, shellfish, poultry, game and cheeses as well as exotic fruits such as peaches, pineapples and grapes.

This picture shows a display of cheeses in a Sainsbury’s shop window. Sainsbury’s not only stocked British cheeses, such as Stilton and Cheddar, but also imported cheeses such as Gruyere, Roquefort and Port du Salut.

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