FNU Student to Represent Fiji in India

Fiji National University student Merewalesi Banuve will represent Fiji at the Junior Olympiad Competition in India next year.

The 20-year-old from Nakobo, Cakaudrove, in Vanua Levu was selected earlier last week and is slowly preparing for her trip in January 2020, where she is expected to compete against contestants from 49 countries.

Ms Banuve is currently a second year student at FNU’s Nasese Campus in Suva pursuing her Trade Diploma in Culinary Arts at the College of Business, Hospitality and Tourism Studies.

She said the competition required a second-year student who was either doing Trade Diploma or Bachelors from a recognised culinary institution.

She also took part in the Fiji Chefs Association National Salon Culinaire

Competition which was held at FNU’s, Namaka Campus in Nadi. “Being part of this competition is in a way preparing me for the Olympiad Competition next year,” she said.

“Since I am a student, I have never competed with chefs that have experience in the industry. “This is my second competition with the Fiji Chefs Association. I made a teriyaki surf and turf and basically the whole theme around it was Japanese so it was a teriyaki glaze, it was a hibachi beef, wasabi escuma, crumbled tofu and radish.”

Ms Banuve also won first place at the Hospitality and Tourism Festival special cookery competition organised by the National Training and Productivity Centre.

“I’ve got a long way to go and I’m still learning along the way,” she said.

From left: Fiji Chefs Association Culinary Director, Mohammed Frauk, Fiji Chefs Association president, Nilesh Chand and World Chefs Continental Director Pacific Rim, Neil Abrahams during the second day of the Fiji Chefs National Salon Culinaire Competition at the Fiji National University, Namaka Campus in Nadi on October 23, 2019.

Merewalesi Banuve (middle).