What Pokémon Eat

One of the questions I get frequently asked, as a major Pokémon fan, is "what does Pikachu/do Pokémon eat?" It's an enigmatic question that is in the interest of Pokémon fans and non-Pokémon fans alike. What's the answer? It's a bit long and winded, but fortunately I've explained quite a bit of it in other posts on this blog. All I have to do is to recap those relevant posts and give a bit of additional information as well.

A quick but partial answer that I often give is that Pokémon eat Pokémon food. This is a bit "duh", but this is the reality as depicted in the anime, which could be taken to be a general case. The food is often depicted as kibble-like pellets, for which it is understood that different formulations exist for different Pokémon. Exceptions exist, of course, and one particular one is that Beautifly eats nectar instead of kibble; Bug Pokémon with similar anatomy may do the same - for that matter, Pokémon with specialized anatomy may have their own type of food. It's obvious, but not necessarily simple.

If Pokémon food is not available, then Pokémon would predictably turn to other natural sources of food, and they do. There are many kinds of Berries available for Pokémon to consume, though they probably cannot subsist on that alone. For that, there is the apple, which provides an additional source of sustenance. There may be other varieties of natural edible substances that Pokémon may consume, but that may be up to the individual imagination as much they could reasonably look like the real-world counterparts.

Perhaps in a rare case, Pokémon could consume either people or other Pokémon. As I've detailed in a post regarding food chains, Pokémon lore is detailed in the Pokédex, and if the lore is taken to be true, then Pokémon can conceivably eat people (when the conditions warrant for this occur) or other Pokémon (like typical predator-prey relationships in life). But of course, these situations may be far and few between, and Pokémon may far prefer the other two things to eat rather than this extreme case.

The reality is that Pokémon is a living world with many people and creatures in particular. In the same way that people need to eat to survive, Pokémon have to also consume at least something to maintain their survival. The question that I initially posed - or rather was posed by other people to me - becomes a valid concern. The answer to that question is ultimately as sensible as much as it is complex, even if it's slightly imaginative.

One year ago: Pokémon Jigsaw Puzzle