The Center for Culinary Arts, Manila (CCA, Manila), the country's pioneer in professional culinary education, ups its culinary ante by offering a program exclusive for Nutritionist-Dietitians (ND) – another breakthrough in the industry.

"The Culinary Arts for Nutritionist-Dietitians (CAND) is a unique program for the NDs working in hospitals, communities and various fields," says Ma. Paz L. Sales, Managing Director of CCA, Manila. "This program is the first in the Philippines and CCA, Manila is once again the pioneer in offering this special culinary course."

CAND is a special course that applies culinary arts principles and techniques to nutritional cooking.  It offers a series of comprehensive classes featuring theories and methods in proper food preparation, cooking, food plating and presentation that will help expand the ND’s professional reach. The course aims to equip them with dual expertise of preparing healthy menus at the same time being able to cook professionally, which will be their competitive edge not only in the food service but also in the health industry as well.

"The role of the ND is very crucial in terms of defining what healthy menus are," adds Sales. "But they should be equipped in professional cooking as well to be given bigger opportunities here and abroad. In CCA, Manila, we want to help them professionalize their cooking skills. We want to further hone their skills and give them the opportunity to expand their reach and go places."

Although the course is exclusive to nutritionists as of the moment, Sales is optimistic it will not be the case in the near future. "We will evaluate how we can eventually offer the program to other health-allied professionals like food technologists, with the end objective, of course, of teaching them the professional way of cooking," she explains.

Primarily, the role of the ND is to assess the diets of patients with medical problems and to provide advice on ways to prevent or control various health problems by regimenting the patient’s diet. This includes planning of food and diet programs as well as giving personal nutritional advice to people interested in maintaining their health and well-being.

Now, imagine equipping the NDs with the proper way of preparing delicious, healthy meals complete with world-class plating and food presentation. This would give a whole new meaning to hospital and diet foods.  

Nowadays, being discriminating with what we eat is not so much about achieving or maintaining an ideal weight anymore as it is about being concerned with our health. It's no wonder nutritionists are starting to become in demand both here and abroad. "The direction of CCA, Manila is, of course, to align itself with the health profession, given the fact that there are many health concerns nowadays," adds Sales.

Nutrition students and teachers, nutrition and dietitics graduates, registered NDs, clinical and community nutritionist and food service managers are encouraged to enroll in the program. Course fee includes ingredients, lecture and recipe handouts, chef's jacket, apron, skull cap and side towel. Classes start in June.

For inquiries, call 994-2520/30/40 or e-mail marketing@cca-manila.com or visit the interactive website at www.cca-manila.com.