Trusting the Algorithm? The Challenge of Delegating Dietary Expertise to an Automated System

Join us for a webinar with Tanja Schneider who will give a presentation on “Trusting the Algorithm? The Challenge of Delegating Dietary Expertise to an Automated System.” This webinar will take place on Wednesday, April 2, from 12:45–1:45 p.m.

Abstract

Over the past decade, digital platforms and devices have become increasingly available and embedded into eaters’ everyday life, acting as non-human algorithmic agents that shape eating practices. This talk examines the development of one such algorithmic actor—a dietary monitoring and intervention app—based on my recent participation in an interdisciplinary research collaboration involving scholars from information studies, computer science, and science and technology studies (STS). The app, ‘FoodCoach,’ was designed to inform consumers about their food shopping behavior by calculating and displaying a Nutri-Score for their weekly grocery purchases (based on donated digital receipt data) and recommending nutritionally healthier alternatives. This talk explores how digital data and algorithmic systems trouble expertise and, in some cases, provoke contestation. Drawing on go-along interviews and focus group data from our study, I discuss participants’ skepticism toward delegating dietary expertise to an automated system. Many questioned the types of expertise embedded in the app’s development, raising concerns about the backgrounds and knowledge of its creators. While some participants valued the insights and recommendations provided, the majority problematized the app’s primary reliance on nutrient-based scoring, arguing that it overlooked other important forms of expertise, such as culinary knowledge. Furthermore, participants emphasized their own lived experiences and self-knowledge, asserting their role as the primary experts in managing bodily and dietary health.

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