KOTA KINABALU: The inaugural Borneo Hospitality Challenge (BHC) 2020 will continue as planned to showcase to the world that Sabah is free from Covid-19.
Malaysia especially Sabah is safe to hold MICE events and competition such as BHC, where the organisers hopes to put Sabah on the map since the event is of international scale as about 300 competitors will be coming.
Organising chairman Dion Jee speaking during a press conference at Palace Hotel on March 4, 2020 said so far they have received confirmations from Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines and Bangladesh.
“For safety reasons, both China and South Korea who were initially in the fray has pulled out in order to contain the spread of Covid-19,” Dion said, adding that report from WHO says Malaysia is under control.
The event is hold at Sabah International Convention Centre on May 30-31, starting from 9am to 9pm on the first-day whilst on the second day, it will ends at 5pm.
The public are welcome to watch the competition which also features 50 exhibition booths from the hotel suppliers.
The event aims to showcase the chefs culinary skills in appetizer, artistic show piece and individual challenge.
There will be 20 categories including team challenge, flair tending, barista, latte art and mocktail, he said.
The event is open to contestants age 16 onwards. Registration fees are from RM150 to RM500 and can be done online at www.bcasabah.com.
The top three winners will respectively receive USD1,000, USD500 and USD200 including medals and certificates endorsed by International Food and Beverage Association (IFBA), and Malaysian Food and Beverage Executives Association (MFBEA). The event is supported by Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Environment.
“The BHC2020 winners will earn a berth to compete in Food and Hotel Malaysia (FHM) 2021 as MFBEA is the co-organiser under Malaysia Association of Hotels for FHM 2020 food and beverage service competition.
“The winners will stand a chance to compete in the international competition endorsed by IFBA, thus making ways for Sabahans to gain international exposure,” Dion said.-HS