Thought for Food Blog

The Rise of Food Science and Technology Studies in China

Food Science in China | IFIS Publishing

The food industry in China has developed rapidly since the opening up of China to the world in the 1980s and the adoption of the new economic reform policies by the Chinese Government. It now constitutes one of the largest employment sectors, involving more than 10 million people.

Numerous Chinese institutions now support hundreds of projects in both fundamental and applied research areas. These projects cover a wide range of subjects from food quality, including flavour, texture, nutrition and shelf-life, to food safety and biotechnology application in food processing. Most of these research projects address critical issues of food science including food quality and biological and chemical safety.

Improving the utilisation of traditional Chinese herbs as functional ingredients and helping farmers improve living standards through making good use of local resources are also important research areas as are resource sustainability and striking a meaningful balance between the food industry and the environment.

The majority of the core research funds come from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Science and Technology while most of the applied research is supported, like many other countries, by industry.

China has set the goal to provide a world-class education system for students studying food science and technology, and has established a multiple-level education system including higher education, postgraduate courses and vocational programmes.

Since 2008, over 180 institutions and universities – located in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities – have food science and technology curriculums. Among these, the doctoral programmes of 13 universities have been identified as key disciplines in food science and engineering by the Ministry of Education.

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Between 2007-2008 the Ministry of Education approved 14 national courses of excellence in food science with state-of-the-art facilities. As in other countries, an in-depth and robust food science and technology education provides students with an excellent opportunity to pursue a career in the food and food-related industries, local, state and federal government agencies, and educational and research institutions.

Career prospects are currently very good, with job placement in food science and technology above 80% in the past two years. Chinese faculty and staff in food science and engineering have thrived because of the combination of in-depth quality research and a healthy breadth of study; high standards; and the open, collaborative, and innovative culture in the field. At present, there are more than 500 full-time professors and over 100 guest lecturers and associated professors.

Throughout China, food science and technology programmes aim to provide students with the relevant scientific principles to understand food and the food industry; the ability to apply scientific knowledge to meet the needs of industry and consumers for the production and marketing of safe and quality foods; protocols to evaluate health, safety; and the ability to develop management and business skills relevant to the food industry.

A number of factors – the rapid development of food science and technology industries in China; an urgent need for people to understand the range of issues related to food quality, safety and the nutritional properties of food; China entering into the World Trade Organization (WTO); the rapid rise in the standard of living of the Chinese people, and the acceleration of the globalisation of the world economy – have led to an increased demand for well-trained food scientists and food professionals in China.

The local food industry, the multinational food companies investing in China, and the government departments concerned with food production, distribution and safety all have a big demand for graduates with the knowledge and skills in food science and technology, combined with an understanding of how to manage the food industry.

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Photo by Max Oh on Unsplash



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