Advanced university course in Food Studies and Gastronomy: Food Through the Ages (2025 - 2026)

Objectives and competences

Objectives and competences

Objectives

General objectives:
- To acquire a holistic perspective of the global and local food system from the experience of the University of Barcelona.
Study food-related subjects at university level, through an interdisciplinary approach, to learn about the Catalan, Spanish and European food situation and about Catalan culinary and gastronomic heritage and that of other Spanish regions. The topics are approached from various perspectives, and inter-cultural reflection and critical thinking are promoted.

Specific objectives:
- Be aware that, from the start of time, food has been associated with sustenance but also with pleasure.
- Understand how food has united families, nations and ethnic minorities and, in many aspects, has reflected the successes and tensions of a specific historical period.
- Review the history of food, starting from the first dishes created in magic rituals and the bacchanals of the classical world.
- To understand the transformations in palate that emerged as a result of exchanges of the "Old World" between Christian Europe, Islamic North Africa and Asia and the exchanges of the "New World" as a result of discovering America.
- Discover how the rise in haute cuisine in the Renaissance courts was supported by the imperial system that imported sugar from slave plantations and spices from the colonies and how an increasingly globalized market accentuated the inequalities that caused overabundance and famine.
- In turn, discover how food has become a source of comfort and a marker of identity for the immigrant population that has introduced some of the most innovative cuisines, which implies the invention of culinary "fusion" before it became fashionable.
- To gain knowledge on contemporary phenomena such as industrial food, fast food, haute cuisine worldwide and the emergence of the figure of world-renowned chef; all together, with a focus on Barcelona and the Mediterranean world.

Access and admission

Applicant profile and access requirements

Recommended applicant profile

- Students from educational institutions in the United States with an international agreement with specialized entities.
- Exceptionally, vacancies can be filled with national and international university students who accredit a B2 level of English at least.

Access requirements and conditions

The course is also open to students with no prior university education, who will acquire the same knowledge and skills and receive a specific qualification for their learner group. Information on the access requirements and other conditions can be obtained from the course directors.

Pre-enrolment

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