Wet Market Stroll with an Anthropologist | Event Preview

This Saturday (22 August) anthropologist and Foodthink’s longtime friend Zhong Shuru is coming to Beijing with her new book *China’s Wet Markets*! In the morning, we’ll head to a “special market” together to browse and chat; in the evening, we’ll start from “shopping for food in Beijing” and talk about the past and present of China’s wet markets, the human stories behind them, and its possible future.

We welcome you to join us online or in person to discover the wisdom behind saying goodbye to the boring table.

10:00–11:00

Wandering a Special Wet Market with an Anthropologist: *China’s Wet Markets* Livestream Sharing Event

Location: The Shangri-La, Beijing (south gate, Zizhu Bridge) · Beijing Organic Farmers’ Market

Livestream + on-site book signing

*The on-site event includes a book signing; no registration required.

*For the livestream, simply reserve your spot to watch.

19:00–21:00

Saying Goodbye to the Boring Table: *China’s Wet Markets* New Book Launch

Location: Jiantou Bookstore (Guomao branch)

In-person event + livestream

*The in-person event includes a book signing; scan the QR code on the poster to register.

*For the livestream, simply reserve your spot to watch.

– About the Author –

Associate Professor at the School of Tourism, Sun Yat-sen University, with a PhD in Anthropology from Texas A&M University.

She has long researched wet market culture, sustainable food systems, and food tourism, continually exploring in both research and practice how food can serve as a medium to reconnect people with food, nature, society, and place.

If you’re curious about Dr Zhong’s research, she’s actually a long-time regular at Foodthink.

From immersing herself in island fish stalls as a “worker” to exploring how wet markets connect to sustainable living, Dr Zhong has appeared as a guest to share many insights about wet markets with us.

Before the event, why not catch up on these highlights:

🎧 Listen · Roundtable Podcast

🎬 Watch · Event Replay

*The above video is an edit from the sustainable food sharing session held in the Pearl River Delta on 19 July 2023,

for the full event video, please watch the livestream replay on Foodthink’s Video Account (WeChat’s short-video platform).

📖 Read · Field Observations

– New Book Recommendation –

*China’s Wet Markets*

Author: Zhong Shuru; Guangqi Press | July 2026

Why are Chinese people so fond of browsing wet markets? Do young people still go?

How have China’s wet markets stood firm amid the wave of the ‘supermarket revolution’?

What social structures and everyday wisdom do wet markets connect?

Where exactly does the resilience and vitality of wet markets come from?

Over ten years, across more than 50 cities and 200-plus wet markets, the author draws on panoramic observation and fieldwork to explore the history of wet markets, stall-holder communities, supply chains, food consumption culture, and urban public management—uncovering the resilience and vitality at the heart of China’s wet markets.

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