By: Kin F. Sabala
| Fuego cuts the ribbon to mark the opening of the 10th Food Tech Day.
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The Food Tech Day of the Bachelor of Science in Food Technology marked its 10th year with a celebration at the campus gymnasium, March 16, bannering its theme "Food and Fun for All: Responding to the Needs of the Global Market.”
The celebration kicked off with a parade joined by the faculty and students of Food Technology Department.
To officially open the food exhibits for the public, a ceremonial cutting of ribbon was initiated by the guest of honor of the affair, Mr. Jayven L. Fuego, assisted by Campus Satellite Director Dr. Adelfo Z. Virtudazo.
In her opening remarks during the program, Dr. Marife R. Hilapad, BSFT program chair, underscored how work and fun could go together.
"It is very challenging, but we must always remember the fun side of it; if we work with fun, we surely end up loving our work," Dr. Hilapad said.
In addition, she expressed how amazed and proud she was of the preparation made by her students.
She also thanked everyone for lending their time to support the event.
"To the PAFTRHO and BSFT officers, the donors of prizes, Dr. Virtudazo for approving the request, the students from other departments, and other visitors, thank you," Dr. Hilapad expressed.
Meanwhile, Dr. Virtudazo in his inspirational message enlightened the BSFT students of the course they have chosen.
"BSFT is not about luto-luto lang," said Dr. Virtudazo pointing out that food technology is about innovating food that is competitive in the global market.
Additionally, he affirmed what Tony Robins said that “Investing in the science of food is truly an investment in our future.”
He challenged them to develop food products out of locally available raw materials.
“Think of a good product out of an indigenous commodity,” he said citing bugnay as a prime example which could be made into wine or any other products.
“If you have a good research output, you might even be recognized by the DOST,” he added.
Dr. Virtudazo advised the students to responsibly use technology to compete in the global market, especially in this modern time.
Mr. Jayven F. Fuego, a BSFT alumnus, graced this year’s celebration of Food Tech Day as guest speaker.
After graduating from college, Mr. Fuego started working as a research assistant in CAPSU Mambusao in 2018.
In 2019-2020, he was employed as quality assurance officer at Cal’s Poultry Supply Corporation and later on, quality assurance officer at Angelina Bakeshop until he became a store quality auditor at Goldilocks from 2022–present.
Aside from Fuego, retired personnel of CAPSU Mambusao also came to support the activity and served as judges in some of the contest.
Prof. Nalyn L. Valzado, former BSFT program chair; Prof. Erna N. Ticar, former college registrar; and Mr. Ceferino L. Lizada, former extension associate, attended the occasion.
BSFT students grouped themselves into three namely: F’Tech Masters, Tycoon and Innotech for the different contests.
The different contests included cheerdance, cooking, table skirting, display booth, and parlor games.
In the cooking showdown, two members from each team created a special dish using squash as the main ingredient.
Team F’tech Masters proudly plated squash lollipop prepared by Isiah Kevin Alejandro and Jena Ocado.
Angel Rey Gascon and Janrico Magnabihon of the Tycoon team combined squash, condensed milk, evaporated milk and sugar to create halayang kalabasa.
Innotech, represented by Alfred Duran and Marvin Hernandez, came up with squash nuggets with special squash sauce.
A day before the event, each team set up a booth in the gym where they sold different food products and sales were recorded to determine which team had the highest net proceeds.
In the afternoon, the students enjoyed the parlor games facilitated by Dr. Lillibeth G. Leonor.
The winners of the different contests were announced before the one-day celebration ended.
Cheerdance
1st place – Innotech
2nd place – Tycoon
3rd place – F’Tech Masters
Cooking Showdown
1st place – Tycoon and Innotech
2nd place – F’Tech Master
Table Skirting
1st place – Tycoon
2nd place – F’tech Masters
3rd place – Innotech
Booth
1st place – Innotech
2nd place – F’Tech Masters
3rd place – Tycoon
Parlor Games
Banana-eating – Innotech
Pakwan-eating – F’Tech Masters
Eggplant Relay – Innotech
Kalamansi Dance – Tycoon
Prof. Lalaine E. Ricardo, SAS coordinator, in her closing remarks applauded the BSFT for showcasing their talents which she had never seen before and for their fun-filled celebration.
“It was fun from morning until afternoon. It’s a job well done because of excellent preparation,” Prof. Ricardo said.