SACA & UFS Unite

Top chefs from around the country – all members of South Africa’s national culinary team (the Bafana Bafana of the culinary world) – joined forces with Unilever Food Solutions today to give  children and  hospice residents in KwaMashu a morning to remember.

In a charity drive initiated by Unilever Food Solutions, the little residents of the Ukusizaneni Place of Safety in KwaMashu Township, Durban were treated to an afternoon complete with lunch, a cupcake making lesson and a friendly soccer match with the chefs

This collaborative initiative between Unilever and the South African Chefs Association was held for the first time last year in Gauteng.  “We see this as an opportunity to highlight the plight of hungry children by providing them with a balanced meal and a few essentials to make their lives a little easier”...

The Ekusizaneni Place of Safety was founded by Mrs Bathobile Favourite Jeanette Mhlongo in 1984.  She was working from home and took it upon herself to accommodate children in need of care as a result of the political riots in the KwaMashu Township.  The home accepts children from the ages of one day to 18 years of all race groups and gender and currently houses around 100 children.

As the official squad for South Africa, Team SA will be competing in the Culinary World Cup in November this year, showcasing the finest South African fare to the world.  But this morning, they set aside their gourmet skills to prepare and serve lunch to these children who are so in need of some extra care and attention.

“We at Unilever Food Solutions and the chefs from Team SA were delighted to be able to use this opportunity to highlight the plight of hungry children by providing them with a balanced meal, some cupcake fun and a few treats,” says Craig Elliott, Executive Head Chef at Unilever Food Solutions.

“Many of our National Team chefs work in five-star hotels and top restaurants, serving gourmet food to upmarket clientele every day. We therefore take great pleasure in the opportunity to align ourselves with Unilever on this project and in so doing be able to step out of the kitchen and do our part for the greater community by making however small a difference in the lives of people for whom basic food is often a luxury,” says Bruce Burns, Team SA Manager.

The children were each given a hot meal, a cold-drinks donated by ABI, cupcakes and goodie bag containing toothbrushes, facecloths, books, stationery and sweets.  Some of the children were given a fun demonstration by the chefs on how to ice a cupcake, with more icing ending up on their happy faces than on the cupcakes, while others enjoyed a friendly game of soccer with the chefs.

Team South Africa will be competing in the Culinary World Cup from 20 to 24 November 2010 in Luxembourg.