Meliá Chiang Mai in Thailand is taking in culinary students from Suan Dusit University in Lampang, Chiang Mai University, and Rajamangala University of Technology Lanna Tak to provide education on sustainable farming, culinary and waste management practices.
Through this partnership with the three Thai universities, the hotel invites participating students to experience its 360° Cuisine programme, which works towards carbon reduction and food resilience through local farmers. The hotel sources vegetables, fruit, herbs, cage-free eggs, sterilised fresh milk, artisanal cheese, honey and more from a network of nearby ethical and chemical-free suppliers, such as gourmet organic farms Seed and Rong Khum as well as Jartisann Cheeserie and Supha Bee Farm.
The 360° Cuisine programme is spearheaded by Meliá Chiang Mai’s executive chef Suksant (Billy) Chutinthratip. Suksant and his team abide by a farm-to-plate approach to food preparation, where a “thoughtful cooking process” is carried out to use as much of their harvest as possible before food waste is returned to the farms as fertiliser.
Since the 360° Cuisine programme’s inception in 2022 until July this year, the hotel has processed more than 5,590kg of leftover food as compost and fertiliser and more than 1,820kg of cooking oil as biodiesel fuel.
To understand the 360° Cuisine programme, students visit Seed and Rong Khum organic farms to learn about sustainable agriculture, spend time in the hotel’s kitchens to see sustainable practices in action, and reference case studies prepared by Suksant.
Each batch of interns are expected to spend three to five months with the hotel, with the duration dependent on their course requirements.
Commenting on the educational initiative, Suksant said it was “incredibly rewarding” to see the students learn and appreciate the hotel’s sustainability efforts.
“Students hold the key to long-term changes benefitting the health of our guests, community and environment,” he said.
In response to TTG Asia’s query on employment opportunities with the hotel upon completion of the training programme, Suksant said: “Currently, we are open to all candidates interested in joining our team. Our selection process prioritises those who demonstrate a sustainability mindset.”
He added that the hotel had previously hired some interns “who shared our passion for sustainability” upon graduation. These students took up earlier internship opportunities that Meliá Chiang Mai established with universities and colleges in Northern Thailand since June 2023.
“We started the graduates in casual kitchen-hand positions, as they graduated right as we experienced more demand for kitchen staff on the back of (increased) occupancy and our F&B requirements. The timing was perfect,” he added.
Hot on the heels of the collaboration with the three Thai universities, the hotel signed a Memoranda of Understanding with Ayutthaya Vocational College and Bungphra Phitsanulok Commercial College on September 18. This will see the hotel furthering its investment in talent development, especially in the area of sustainable culinary practices.
