UCC’s Postgraduate Diploma in Irish Food Culture

The Irish food industry is booming, food and culinary tourism is thriving, while a buoyant and creative community of small-scale food producers, chefs, writers and influencers bring creative diversity to the ways in which we engage with food. Yes despite these developments, there has been no corresponding academic programme of study that examines the complexities, the intricacies, and the fascinating elements in the development and evolution of Irish food culture. The Post-Graduate Diploma in Irish Food Culture is designed to redress this imbalance. It is the first university programme of study that has a dedicated focus on Irish food and culinary culture. It examines food and culinary systems of the past and the present from the perspectives of production, processing, preservation, preparation and consumption. It will guide students through popular discourses such as farm to fork, ocean to plate, factory to plate, exploring what these mean in the present day and what they meant in the past. It will also explore concepts like identity, tradition, gender, memory, and ethics and discuss how these apply to the study of food. Areas of study include food and culinary history, food and folklore, food and creative practice, food and literature, nutrition and health, food and the environment, sustainability, food policy, the contemporary Irish food system and research methods in foodways. This course offers candidates a unique opportunity to study Irish food culture in a holistic matter. It will enable students to distinguish between food facts and food myths and it will foster from candidates a respect and a love for research in the area of Irish food studies.

Course Curriculum

Year I

An Introduction to Irish Food Studies

The Irish Food System and Food Policy

Irish Food and Culinary History

Food and Creative Practice

Year 2

Food, Festival and Folklore

Food, the Environment and Sustainability

Introduction to the Principles of Nutrition

Research Methods in Foodways

Unique aspects of the course

• UCC’s new Post-Graduate Diploma in Irish Food Culture is an exciting and original programme of study. It is the first university course that takes a transdisciplinary approach to exploring Irish food culture.
• UCC has a long and proud tradition of excellence in food research and student-focused teaching, and this course brings together a stellar team of academics, who are well-respected and well-established in their fields of study. Students will be exposed to the results of their original and cutting-edge research, to critical and original thinking in Irish food studies, and to innovative teaching approaches.
• This is a rare opportunity to study with acclaimed academics, to be inspired by their expertise and to be guided by them in developing creative and critical approaches to applying your skills and knowledge of Ireland’s food culture to career development and innovation.

And, as this is the only course of its kind in Ireland, successful candidates will be able to engage with authority and integrity with developments and discussions of Irish food culture, thereby giving them competitive advantage in career/employment markets.