From Magnus Eze, Enugu
•Cooking competition
Nestle Professionals, the Out-of-Home arm of Nestlé Nigeria, has trained no fewer than 200 caterers and food vendors in Enugu on food business skills to boost their knowledge in the business.
That day, the company practically tuned the Handball Pitch of Nnamdi Azikiwe International Stadium, Enugu, to a culinary arena. At the event with the theme: “The Business of Food,” Nestle also launched its new Maggi Signature Jollof Seasoning powder in the state.
Nestle Nigeria Food Manager, Oladipupo Jubril, said that the company created Nestlé Professionals to connect with their key opinion leaders in the food system.
He explained that the idea was to bring them together to showcase their products.
“Teach them more about the products, the usage to enhance their cooking as we as benefit from using the company’s products.”
According to him, Nestlé Nigeria provides convenient and affordable solutions to people in food businesses with the introduction of powder Maggi that can easily give their food best taste and quality.
“The essence is to celebrate the long journey of being together since the introduction of the Nestlé Professional Maggi powder into the Nigeria market.
“Participants have been buying our products and we identify with them, even as they buy in open market in condiments section. They are our success in the food space when it comes to out-of-home business.
“So, we see it as a good opportunity to bring them closer to know more about the products as a lot of them did not know there is a solution called Maggi powder in the market,” he said.
The food manager added that the professionals took them on the process of cooking, what they needed to do in terms of food handling and placement, and the nutrients they will get when they use Nestlé products.
“We also made them understand that the business of food as it is, is not only about cooking but that there is need to understand the cost element involved and with this, we are creating better food entrepreneurs,” he said.
Jibril stressed that similar programmes had been conducted in Kano, Port Harcourt, Jos, Abuja and Ilorin, explaining that Enugu was 7th in the series.
“We had massive turnout and very interesting results in Enugu,” he added.
“We wanted to bring together those in the food system, including the chefs, Grillers and even students attending culinary schools in Enugu and teach them how the product can bring out the best colour, taste and quality of their food when used.”
As a company, he stated that “we understand the importance of our customers and that is why we will keep working to improve our services to them,” adding that participants also learnt about food placement and how to mix the new products.
It featured a masterclass and different competitions, including cooking, singing and dancing, with winners in each of these categories going home with different gifts.
The highlight of the event included the empowerment of the participants with catering equipment, as well as cooking and dancing competitions.