Beirut, March 18, 2016: Roadster diner, the pioneering Lebanese restaurant chain for American themed dining, launched a food safety awareness program in collaboration with the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at AUB. The program includes a series of awareness workshops hosted at Roadster diner’s branch on Bliss Street, Hamra, with the participation of a number of institutions and NGOs operating in Lebanon.
Roadster diner, being a partner to the local community, opens its doors once again to cooperate with associations to support their humanitarian and social causes, especially food safety. For that reason, it is providing NGOs with the opportunity to collect donations by hosting free fundraising brunches and offering food safety workshops, which are prepared and presented by the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at AUB.
While commenting on the launch of the program, Food safety Manager at Roadster diner Jana Majzoub said: “Stemming from our belief and commitment to provide healthy food to our customers, and as part of our corporate social responsibility program, we started an awareness program on food safety at home in cooperation with the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at AUB This is in order to spread awareness, while offering information and advice on food safety especially to mothers, housewives and of course all segments of society. Roadster diner believes that its partnership with the local community is part of its culture and thus continuously strives to support and develop the local community. We are also very committed to supporting institutions and NGOs working on community service. For that reason, we are determined to allow these NGOs to take advantage of the awareness workshops, as well as this fundraising opportunity that will help support their activities and programs. ”
Dr. Nasreddine, the chairperson of the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences, commented that “the mission of the Department is to raise community awareness on issues pertinent to nutrition and food safety, hence the collaboration with Roadster diner and local NGOs. Our aim is to contribute towards enhancing food safety awareness and practices amongst mothers, housewives and therefore the society as a whole”.
The first awareness workshop was held at Roadster diner on Bliss Street with “Shifaa for the Humanitarian Act”. This NGO deeply believes in the importance of human life and its value, as being the core of a great community to which we collectively strive to offer social and medical services.
The workshop focused on food safety at home. Detailed scientific information was given by Ms. Rita Jalkh from the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences at the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at AUB. She spoke of the meaning behind food safety, the importance of starting at home and what bacteria really are. Jalkh also explained the correct procedure to be followed during grocery shopping and how to store food, addressing the wrong habits we have adopted at home as opposed to how things should be done. The lecture also touched on hygiene procedures during food preparation as well as food sterilization methods and how to deal with frozen goods. Finally, the workshop addressed food safety while cooking and the required temperature to get rid of bacteria while also ensuring a healthy and properly cooked meal. The audience benefited a great deal from the workshop, especially the mothers who especially enjoyed the tips on how to maintain children’s health through choice of food.
Dona Hamweh, representative from Shifaa, expressed her enthusiasm with this opportunity that Roadster diner offered them as an NGO, allowing them to participate in the awareness workshop. While stressing the importance of spreading awareness about food safety at home, she said: “Through this workshop, we had the chance to share our vision and message as an association and the role that we play in service of society, thus raising funds for our activities as an NGO. We also benefited a great deal from the rich health information we received regarding how to ensure food safety at home”.
Roadster diner will continue its awareness program and will host its second workshop with the NGO YASA, at its branch on Bliss Street on March 19, 2016.