In the city of Yueyang (Hunan Province, China), the University of Open Education, together with the local Barbecue Association, will establish the country’s first research center dedicated to traditional barbecue. The new institution will specialize in training specialists in the field of Chinese barbecue, informs South China Morning Post.
The educational program includes two and a half years of theoretical training and a six-month internship at specialized enterprises. The center plans to recruit 50 to 100 students annually, and train up to a thousand specialists in the first three years.
The project aims to professionalize the field of street cuisine. In addition to practical skills, students will learn the basics of restaurant management, technology standardization and compliance with sanitary standards. The university also intends to create industry standards and a certification system for barbecue masters. The program will be available to both high school graduates and youth who are not continuing their education, as well as current industry workers seeking to upgrade their skills.
The barbecue sector in China reached a profit of $421.9 million in 2024, and is forecast to grow to $606.5 million by 2030. Yueyang itself is known for its deep barbecue tradition: more than 2,000 establishments bring in more than 2 billion yuan ($280 million) annually and provide jobs for about 50,000 people.
