The Barbecue Culture

The barbecue culture has developed in a very dynamic way over the past two decades. The barbecue is an integral part of people’s life and leisure culture in the summer in many countries in Europe and in the United States. The barbecue and grilling trend is kept in the colder seasons, too, in the United States and the Western European countries. In Europe, only around one in four owners organizes barbecues in the colder months. However, more and more people see the barbecue as a social event, which you can celebrate with friends and relatives. Grilling the perfect steak is far more than a normal social event even in the private sector. It is estimated that almost one in three Americans have barbecues. The factors at the top of the barbecue culture list all over the world are taste and fun. Barbecue is traditionally popular in Latin America, too. The barbecue culture has moved from the United States to Europe in the last ten years. The barbecue culture also brought a new culture to Europe and the United States: the barbecue competition.



Barbecue competitions are especially numerous in the southern United States and some of them are really big events. Barbecue contests in teams represent a new dimension of the barbecue culture worldwide. The World Barbecue Association (WBQA) leads the empire of barbecue competitions. More and more clubs emerge from the barbecue grill wave in the United States. The most influential organization when it comes to national barbecue competitions is the German Barbecue Association (GBA). The GBA was founded in 1996 and is based in Hilden in the Rhineland. The organization was founded by interested Fleischer masters and people interested in the barbecue business, who emphasize and encourage the German free-time barbecue culture. Their goal in the long term is to be recognized as grill masters, who pass on their knowledge to an interested public. It can be observed that more and more people are interested in obtaining qualified information about grilling. A much broader level of information about barbecues has been created especially through the internet. The grill culture in Germany and other countries has thus reached a much higher level.


National barbecue organizations analogous to the German GBA have been established all over the world. The international barbecue culture refers mainly to the grilled food like vegetables or grilled salmon culture. The Germans, for instance, love their sausages, which are grilled quickly and directly. Barbecues are especially popular in the United States, Central America or Latin America, but cook foods like vegetables have also become very popular. Vegetable grilling is still not widespread in Europe. Europeans prefer to grill pork or beef. Products such as spare ribs are especially popular in the United States. The smoking method has become more highly appreciated than the direct grilling method, where foods such as spare ribs are placed on charcoal. The grill culture also includes the knowledge of using grills. Gas grills are extremely popular in the United States. In Europe, the classic charcoal grill is the most popular among friends. Americans are also more likely to purchase a large grill, whereas Europeans tend to rent barbecues, especially smaller, more secure and user-friendly barbecues. Unfortunately, the European culture includes the beloved neighborhood disputes, which occur at almost every such social event. Grills that release less harmful smoke are at high demand on the European market. A new grill pattern which is very international in nature and which has influenced the cultural development of barbecues is health-conscious grilling. Lava stone grills and other health-grill products are on the rise both in Europe and in the United States of America.