Something’s cooking at Keiser University’s campus in Lakewood Ranch, Florida.

The same thing is simmering at La Maison Gourmet in Dunedin, Florida, and at Hillsborough Community College.

Rising interest in culinary-related education—possibly fueled by the economic downturn, lagging job market, and the “foodies” culture—is creating opportunities for private and public institutions, along with small businesses such as La Maison.

Numbers show cooking-related education and careers may not be a bad bet.

Employment of chefs, head cooks, and food preparation and serving supervisors is expected to increase 6 percent by 2018, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Depending on the region and type of employer, the median annual wage-and-salary earnings of chefs and head cooks was $38,770 in May 2008, the latest available statistics show.

The median annual wage-and-salary earnings of food preparation and serving supervisors was $28,970.

Most of the workers in these occupations have some post-secondary training, according to the bureau, and this translates into more culinary-related programs.

“Our enrollment growth has been phenomenal,” said Fred Jaeger, culinary arts program manager at HCC. “Every single class has been overloaded. We’re teaching as many classes as we can because our enrollment is at an all-time high.

Program enrollment in the spring of 2008 for 27 classes was 413 students. This spring, 681 students enrolled in 37 classes, causing HCC to add more adjunct instructors.

“I think this shows you what a vital part of workforce development this is,” Jaeger said. “Even with the economy the way it is, this industry is important. We are weathering the storm quite well. We’re trying to meet workforce-training needs by increasing the number of classes.”

At a recent convention, the overall consensus was that the culinary service industry did “all right” last year because people continue to eat out and want good meals, he said.

What Jaeger called a “trade down” is the softening in the fine-dining, white-tablecloth sector, while there has been a slight increase in the number of establishments where people can go and prepare their own meals with a professional’s assistance.

“The biggest sector still is fast food,” Jaeger said. “It’s just a sign of the times.”

Community College Heeds Projections

An economic-modeling specialist hired by HCC recently projected the demand for culinary-related employees in the region by 2017.

A 23 percent increase is expected in the demand for food-service managers, who currently make an average of $58,000 a year. A 20 percent increase in demand was projected for chefs and head cooks, who now make an average annual salary of $46,000.