The term "foodways" signifies not only the food of a culture, but its relationship to the history, art, agriculture, and everyday lives of its people. Many Universities and other organizations, created for the purpose of education provide programs specifically designed to study foodways and how they reflect culture. These include the The Avery Research Center for African American History and Culture in Charleston, South Carolina; The Penn Center on Charleston's Sea Islands; and Caw Caw Interpretive Center just outside of Charleston, South Carolina. Scholars are discovering how foodways preserve and present concrete insight into the way cultures interact.
The University of Mississippi's Southern Foodways Alliance in Oxford, Mississippi is also dedicated to studying culinary art and the evolution of cooking in the American South. They explore how the many different cultures of the South share recipes, cooking methods, and foodstuffs. We had the privilege of sharing lunch with the director of the Southern Foodway's Alliance, John T. Edge. He gave us invaluable insight into how the field of foodways is helping to bring the work of cooks, fisherman, farmers, and scholars together through festivals, conferences, publications, and oral history recordings.