The theories regarding food culture concerned with whale meat include the following: "In the Edo period, there were many areas where the culture of eating whale meat was deep-rooted," "It was after World War II that whale meat became to be eaten generally throughout Japan and the meat was positioned as a substitute of animal meat."
鯨肉をめぐる食文化論には、「江戸時代には鯨食が文化として根付いていた地域が多数存在した」「日本国内で鯨食が一般化したのは第二次世界大戦後であり、その位置づけは代用獣肉であった」というもの等がある。