Berjaya Group unveils Berjaya Culinary Arts Garden, the 1st of its kind in PH, at GK Enchanted Farm

Education is fundamental to growth and development. In a country where poverty and social dilemmas hamper many underprivileged sectors of society, providing meaningful learning opportunities is pivotal in order to make accessible education a reality for all. One such noble mission was achieved by Berjaya Philippines, as it brings quality learning closer to the poor when it unveiled the Berjaya Culinary Arts Garden during the 10th anniversary of Gawad Kalinga held at the GK Enchanted Farm in Angat, Bulacan.

As a firm advocate of active corporate citizenship, the Berjaya Group joined thousands of fellow change-makers who celebrated the decade-long power of love, bayanihan and lasting partnerships with Gawad Kalinga, the country’s highly trusted community development foundation.

Berjaya Culinary Arts Garden: Corporate philanthropy at work

Envisioned as one of the vital cornerstones of learning inside the GK Enchanted Farm — touted the first ever Farm Village University in Asia — the Berjaya Culinary Arts Garden is a 30-hectare training facility that perfectly supports the Farm’s dynamic role as incubator-hub for the country’s growing social entrepreneurship.

Serving as the primary food center of the GK Enchanted Farm which provides livelihood to 200,000 partners, the Berjaya-sponsored facility also serves as a school-within-community for students and social entrepreneurs where they can develop their skills and products. Besides a sizable demo kitchen and service area where guests can eat organically-grown healthy meals prepared by its upcoming culinary arts students, the facility also has its own adjoining herb garden. It also looks up to the preservation of its surrounding environs with its ingenious Biomimicry design — allowing it to tap solar energy through solar panels and rain water harvester roofs.

Besides building houses for the poor, the company has gone all the way to providing training and livelihood opportunities for the GK residents. According to Paul Soo, Berjaya Group Country Head, “The real profit lies in the heart. Getting into this partnership has sparked change not just to the people that we help, but it comes back to us a motivation, as an inspiration to do more for our society. We really want to be part of the Philippine society by becoming involved with this endeavor.”

The unveiling was graced by no less than Vice President and Housing Chief Jejomar Binay, along with GK’s Founder Tony Meloto and Executive Director Luis Oquinena, local government officials of Bulacan, and Berjaya Group officials led by Berjaya Group Country Head Paul Soo, Director Tan Eng Hwa and Iannis Hanen, CEO of Friendster.