A dynamic recovery is on the way for Canada’s culinary and hospitality sector as hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions reimagine their operations for our evolving post-pandemic future. George Brown College offers the programs that will set you up for success on the “flip side of the pandemic.”
The culinary and hospitality comeback will drive up hiring over the coming months and years as businesses re-establish and/or expand their workforces. At the same time, entrepreneurial types with new business ideas are helping to further revitalize the sector. All of this translates into an expanding labour market offering a diverse range of opportunities. Being a part of this exciting renewal requires industry-informed, practical training of the kind we provide at the Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts.
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New possibilities in a post-COVID world
People in Canada and abroad are eager to enjoy culinary and hospitality experiences.
- 80 per cent of Canadians planning to travel when restrictions ease (Destination Canada)
- 74 per cent saying what they’ve missed most during COVID-19 is their favourite restaurant (Toronto Star)
- Predicted decline in international travel will accelerate the domestic market’s resurgence (Destination Canada)
- Google searches for resorts and hotels reaching their highest point in nearly a decade (Fortune Magazine)
“We are hearing industry folks talking about new possibilities in a post-Covid world—the need and the opportunities to re-invent old ways of operating, leverage new technology, create new business models and update practices. What a perfect time to join the industry” says Lorraine Trotter, Dean, Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts. “What employers are looking for is innovative energy, new ideas and fresh eyes, which are the very attributes that our students and graduates bring to the table, in addition to solid foundational and advanced knowledge and skills.”
Exciting new programs
Since last fall, the Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts has restored key aspects of experiential learning by allowing students to participate in staggered lab sessions that follow strict health and safety restrictions. At the same time, it introduced a library of high-quality culinary skills videos as a training tool for students.
“Those coming out of a diploma program benefit from learning about things like managerial accounting, research, HR, statistics, finance and food science,” says professor Warren Ford. “Coming into a culinary program of our nature at this time is how you set yourself up for success on the flip side of the pandemic, whether it’s running a restaurant, starting your eatery or capitalizing on other opportunities in the industry.”
Honours Bachelor of Food Studies
This fall we’re launching the Honours Bachelor of Food Studies. Built around the four food pillars of sustainability, equity, health and policy, this four-year program examines the challenges and opportunities in our local and global food systems. It includes one work experience and opens up career pathways to roles not only in culinary and tourism but also recreation, education, health, food security, public policy, research and other milieus.
“Over the last year, we’ve seen quite a few cracks in Canada’s food system exposed. Those who want to advocate for change—and increasingly, this is something we are expecting of chefs—can develop the expertise to respond to these major issues facing society,” says Caitlin Scott, coordinator and professor.
Food Tourism Entrepreneurship graduate certificate
We’re also launching Food Tourism Entrepreneurship this fall, a one-year graduate certificate program that prepares people to create food and beverage (including non-alcoholic) “tastes of place” experiences of distinct regions. By partnering with an industry organization on a project and completing an externship, students explore the geographies of food and beverage, creating and marketing tourism enterprises, operating sustainably, and building business relationships with agricultural, hospitality and tourism stakeholders.
“Students develop a full grasp of the realities of operating a food tourism business, and how to develop niche food experiences,” says Maria Banyai, coordinator, and professor. “It’s a timely program, because by the time they graduate in 2022, the recovery phase will be in full swing, and that’s when you need people with new skills who are ready to work.”
