A SUSTA Generic Program

This May, a group of influential Taiwanese chefs visited Thibodaux, Louisiana for a two-week training program sponsored by the Southern U.S. Trade Association (SUSTA) and held at the John Folse Culinary Institute. The twelve participants were introduced to a variety of southern cooking styles through cooking demonstrations, seminars, and visits to local culinary and historical places of interest. The chefs received specialized, hands-on training from the culinary professors at the school, as well as two regional guest chefs: Dale Hawkins, who demonstrated Appalachian cooking, and New Orleans native Carmen Bazile, who introduced the group to Soul Food. The Taiwanese chefs learned about Barbecue, Tex-Mex, Cajun, Creole, and other styles, flavors and techniques of southern cooking.

Not long after they returned to Taiwan, the chefs had an opportunity to use their newly acquired skills. In June, an event at the Food Taipei trade show and a series of demonstrations showcased southern cuisine in the two major cities of Taipei and Kaohsiung. The promotions, sponsored by SUSTA and Taiwan's Agricultural Trade Office (ATO), featured southern U.S. Chef George Kaslow, one of the Culinary Training Program instructors. The ATO staff, led by director Keith Schneller, organized many of the events in both cities, and Kaslow created the southern recipes used in the demonstrations.

The series of promotions kicked off at the Food Taipei trade show, where six SUSTA-trained chefs from Taipei assisted Kaslow in demonstrating southern cooking. At the NanGang Exhibition Hall in Taipei, the menu highlighted eight dishes from the southern U.S. region. Chef Tony Chang, one of the SUSTA-trained chefs and President of the Formosa Chefs Association, assisted Kaslow during this event. The two impressed the crowd and media with their classically prepared, authentic southern dishes.

The following week at the Taipei Sherwood Hotel, Chef Kaslow instructed an audience on how to prepare jambalaya. The demonstration was filmed for television broadcast, and Chef Kaslow was featured in additional radio and television interviews.

Troy Rosamond, SUSTA's Financial Director and the director of the Culinary Training Program, arrived in Taipei for the second week of promotions. "The show and promotions were the most effective activity SUSTA has had in conjunction with the Chef Training Program. I believe that these well-planned follow-ups serve as a great example of how we can make the most out of the ATO's initiative and resources. Keith Schneller has done a great job organizing this event series, and I believe it can serve as a model for the future."

Two more demonstrations led by Kaslow kicked off a promotion at the Mitsukoshi chain of department stores. Additional promotions took place at Kaohsiung's Splendor Hotel, where Chef Kaslow conducted a live cooking demonstration for attendees and media. Three chefs from Kaohsiung Hospitality College who participated in this year's SUSTA training program assisted Kaslow with the event, and the group remained busy with media interviews. They also held live demonstrations and peer lectures to educate the hospitality trade about southern cuisine.

With the help of the Foreign Agricultural Service's Emerging Markets Program and Market Access Program Generic, SUSTA has brought chefs from various foreign markets to Louisiana since 2001 to teach them how to prepare and cook southern U.S. food products. Past participants have collaborated with SUSTA to promote southern U.S. food products and dishes in their region of the world. Through this collaboration, SUSTA has introduced southern U.S. products in Central America, South America, Eastern Europe, and Asia.

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