The food challenge to pharma: The unexplored potential of food drugs

Stephanie A. Nairn

Chapter 33 in Handbook of Pharmaceutical Science and Technology Studies, 2026, pp 538-553 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter argues that for social studies of pharmaceuticals to grasp ongoing developments in the field, it is critical to engage with what I call ontologically ambiguous food objects. Ontologically ambiguous food objects refer to objects that are variably classified as food or drugs, depending on the context of use or constitute something in between these categories. Exploring such objects can reveal new insights about de-pharmaceuticalization and other forms of resistance to blockbuster pharmaceuticals. Outlining a case study based on seven years of ethnographic research on food and drug variations of immunotherapy for food allergy, the chapter highlights how the ontological malleability of food and drugs not only creates tension but also is productive in the sense that it can promote intra- and interprofessional collaboration in science and medicine. The chapter concludes by suggesting three important lines of inquiry for future research, including the co-existence of food and drugs in the treatment of disease and disorder; food drug fixes for sociobiological problems such as “epidemics” of obesity, malnutrition, and starvation; and the emergence of unique knowledge regimes and novel regulatory classifications by objects that correspond neither to existing definitions of food nor drugs.

Keywords: Boundary objects; Food drugs; Ontological ambiguity; Pharmaceuticalization; Technological fix; Therapeutic landscape (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035338443
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