SINGAPORE, 5 JULY 2024 — The MOU ceremony — held at Nanyang Polytechnic’s L’Rez student-run restaurant on 2 July 2024 — saw Angeline Tan, Head of Country, Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) Singapore and Loh Chuu Yi, Deputy Principal (Academic), Nanyang Polytechnic signing off on an agreement to boost food sustainability education through knowledge sharing and talent development initiatives. This partnership was initiated by the B2B business unit of Unilever, Unilever Food Solutions (UFS) Singapore.

This milestone is timely, given the high amount of food wastage documented in Singapore. According to the National Environmental Agency, Singapore generated 744,000 tonnes of food waste in 2019, with 40 per cent generated each year contributed by commercial and industrial enterprises.

In UFS’Future Menus 2024 report released this year, experts in the food service industry say that the rising cost of produce means that we need to be resourceful in the way we use them, in order to reduce waste — whether it is using ingredients whole to create more components or sharing excesses with other restaurants. The report, which includes perspectives from UFS' 250 professional chefs and in-depth feedback from over 1,600 chef professionals in 21 markets worldwide, asserts that reducing waste is no longer just about sustainability. Rather, it is about maximising the potential of ingredients and creating unique food stories that have the potential to bring people together. To address this opportunity, UFS has developed “Low-Waste Menus”, with recipes aimed at inspiring chefs and business owners to maximise the potential of food ingredients to reduce cost and food waste.

STARTING YOUNG

In Singapore, UFS aims to work with higher tertiary level institutions to help solve the food waste problem through education before students enter the workforce.

The MOU covers two key aspects of NYP’s three-year full-time Diploma in Food & Beverage Business programme, open to Pre-Employment Training (PET) students and adult learners:

• Development of Food Sustainability Learning Unit
  
  UFS and NYP will jointly develop curriculum, and assessment and certification for the Future Food and Sustainability Management Learning Unit

• Industry talent development and knowledge sharing
  
  To further enhance the learning experience, UFS and NYP may collaborate on talent development and knowledge-sharing initiatives, including but not limited to talks, workshops, internships and projects

Up to 70 students are enrolled per intake for the Diploma in Food & Beverage Business, with at least 350 students expected to graduate over the next five years.

The first batch of students commenced their course in April 2024, with graduation slated for May 2027.

“Singapore’s food and beverage landscape faces interconnected challenges including food waste and unsustainable use of resources,” says Angeline Tan, Head of Country, UFS Singapore. “We want to leverage our industry expertise to invest in the next generation of F&B professionals to begin tackling some of these challenges, and we are excited to work with Nanyang Polytechnic to spearhead this.”

TAPPING A WEALTH OF INDUSTRY KNOWLEDGE

Through NYP’s Professional Competency Model (PCM), industry partners come in to co-develop curriculum, co-teach and co-certify learners, to equip them with the most relevant and in-demand skills and competencies. As a key partner from the F&B sector, UFS will provide expert advice and content to help shape the Diploma in Food & Beverage Business curriculum and equip learners with the skills and knowledge needed to perform real work tasks.

The F&B industry faces wide-ranging challenges such as supply chain consistency and climate change disruption to the global food supply — and consumers across the world are also increasingly interested in supporting healthier food systems as well as sustainably and ethically sourced food.

As one of the world’s top food service companies with over 250 professional chefs in more than 70 countries, UFS is well-placed to tap its wide-ranging industry expertise to co-develop a new Future Food & Sustainability Management learning unit at NYP. Alongside a Food Safety & Hygiene learning unit, this will be part of the Food Safety & Sustainability Management course competency. In addition to creating learning plans and study materials, UFS will work with NYP to craft a curriculum that ensures students understand the trends, opportunities and realities of a rapidly evolving F&B sector — while learning to ideate a wide range of viable solutions.

Students will also have the opportunity to conceptualise a food and beverage sustainability management plan that reduces environmental impact. In addition to acquiring culinary and management skills under the guidance of business leaders and professional chefs, students will innovate and experiment through projects, while gaining insights into food sustainability and the latest industry trends.

FUTURE PROOFING SUSTAINABILITY IN THE F&B SECTOR

UFS’ MOU with NYP will go beyond the school curriculum. The company will support and facilitate sharing on emerging sustainable trends in the F&B industry, and train NYP staff with the technical know-how to teach sustainability and technology in the F&B domain. In line with the Singapore government’s push for lifelong learning for Singaporeans of all ages, UFS and NYP will also jointly explore the development of short courses involving sustainability in food business for adult learners.

Graduates are expected to be sought after in dynamic industries with exciting career prospects in culinary arts and F&B management — including relevant positions within UFS for which recruitment drives will be held. Armed with a Diploma in Food & Beverage Business, graduates can also go on to pursue a degree at local and overseas universities.

“Augmenting education with industry support creates unique ideas and skills to foster innovation,” says Angeline Tan. “Organisations need to break traditional boundaries and make youth a part of the change, inspiring them to think of effective and viable sustainability strategies to create a greener planet for the future.”