Scotland’s fastest growing supermarket, Aldi, is offering 20 schools across the UK the chance to win £20,000 each through its new Kit For Schools competition. Continue reading Aldi competition gives schools the chance to win £20,000 for sports equipment
Scotland’s fastest growing retailer, Aldi, has been praised for its continued support of the Scottish beef industry after the most recent NFU Scotland ‘shelf watch’ survey revealed 86 per cent of fresh beef burgers stocked on its shelves were labelled Scotch Beef PGI. Continue reading Aldi wins praise for supporting Scottish beef industry
As Aldi celebrates its 25th anniversary in Scotland, 14 stores across Edinburgh and the Lothians are now donating surplus food directly to 17 local charities to help prevent hunger across the region. Continue reading Aldi stores launch partnership with local charities
Applications are now open for the ALDI Scottish Sports Fund, with clubs located across Lothians and Scottish Borders invited to apply for a share of £50,000. Continue reading Sports clubs offered ALDI funding boost
ALDI has donated equipment worth £4,000 to Edinburgh College’s Professional Cookery department through a partnership that is also providing new opportunities for students to develop their skills.
The support from ALDI will benefit the kitchens at the college’s Milton Road Campus and has enabled the college to invest in equipment to aid students’ learning, including bowls, trays, table-top and hand mixers, small fridges and sauté pans. ALDI has also donated a TV to assist class learning.
Over the last two years, Edinburgh College’s Professional Cookery students have also been involved in the opening events at eight ALDI stores across Edinburgh, the Lothians and Fife. At the launches, students prepared 15,000 samples for customers to try. Using Scottish ingredients the students treated ALDI customers to snacks including mini pulled pork buns and gin and beetroot cured salmon, and handed out recipe cards.
Professional Cookery lecturer George Baker said: “This has been a fantastic experience for a lot of our first and second-year cookery students. They’ve had the chance to develop recipes and make some great food, and interact with our local communities. The students and lecturers have produced some outstanding dishes, which have had some amazing feedback from ALDI’s customers.
“ALDI has been a great supporter of the college and we really value this partnership. We’ve used their donations to install some more industry-standard equipment in our kitchens, so it’s making a real difference to students’ learning.”
Richard Holloway, regional managing director for Scotland, said: “Supporting local initiatives is hugely important to the team at ALDI. Our partnership with Edinburgh College has helped students to develop new skills and we really value the students’ contribution to our store opening events in the local area.”
Shoppers at the new Aldi store in Cameron Toll Shopping Centre sampled tasty treats made by Edinburgh College students during the store’s first week of opening. Continue reading Shoppers sample cookery students’ culinary delights
Cookery students help make Aldi opening event taste great
Edinburgh College Professional Cookery students gave customers at the new Aldi store in Tranent a taste of the skills they have picked up on their course at the shop’s opening day event.
The students braved the cold October weather to prepare tasters of recipes they had prepared using Aldi products. Customers were delighted to sample butternut squash soup, chocolate tarts, tandoori salmon with naan bread, and beef tagliata, and snapped up recipe cards to use at home.
The students demonstrated their preparation techniques when dishing the recipes and walked around the store to serve tasters to customers. This is the second store opening the students have attended, following the opening of the Cowdenbeath store last month, and gave them great practical experience and the chance to engage directly with customers and hear their positive feedback.
The five students are all studying SVQ Level 2 Professional Cookery at the college. Their course prepares them for working in the professional cookery industry by pairing training in food preparation and restaurant service. Students use these skills working in the college’s Granton Campus canteen and the two training restaurants, The Apprentice and eh15.
Student Kerry Robertson said: “This has been a really great opportunity to work and show off what we’ve learned on our course. I don’t have a job in the catering industry yet, so events like these give me the experience I need to take to future employers. I’ve been serving the samples to the customers today and had some really nice comments.”
Lecturers Chris Cockburn and George Baker accompanied the students. George said “We’re really grateful to Aldi for giving us the opportunity to help out with their store opening. It’s valuable for us as a college and for the students, as it lets people know just how high quality our students and teaching are.”
Pictured: Professional Cookery students James Baigan, Alastair MacKay, Alannah Ramsay, Douglas McGovern and Kerry Robertson outside the new Aldi store.
