Mrs Vera Onche, a food vendor, who lives in Bern, says the response of Europeans and other nationals to Nigerian foods such as jollof rice, plantain and pepper soup is “ overwhelming “.
Onche, who participated during the 2018 African Cultural Festival in Bern which showcased varieties of dishes, arts and craft exhibition as well as cultural display from the continent, said Nigerian delicacies are unbeatable.
‘Most of the Europeans who came to my pavilion ate the Jollof rice and bought take away because they enjoyed our food’
She said she got comments like. ‘This is so tasty and spicy. This tastes good!’ ‘This smells so good.’ ‘What spices did you put?’
Vera Onche said, she locally sourced all the ingredients for the various dishes as it was cumbersome to export certain food into Switzerland.
While speaking on the challenges food vendors faced, she decried the high cost of running a restaurant in Bern, saying that the cost of rent alone was a major shortcoming.
Mr Abdullahi Isah, organiser of the African Cultural Festival and a former chairman of the Nigeria in Diaspora Organization (NIDO) in Switzerland, tasked food vendors and restaurant owners on good presentation of African cuisines.
Isah in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said, if the presentation of African dishes met international standard, it would promote food tourism.
However, in the area of preservation, African food does not require much, Isah said.
“Unlike other continental dishes, our food have little or no preservatives, dishes are freshly made and eaten. Therefore preservation is not a challenge “
“Although some of the ingredients cannot be locally sourced” he added.
According to him, the annual festival is aimed at bringing the African diaspora together with Swiss people to foster relations between them and to promote integration.
Others who spoke to news agency expressed gratitude to the organisers for hosting the festival affirming, it would further deepen relations between Swiss people and the African diaspora.
