On May 8, 2012, the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences at the Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, organized a “Festival of International Traditional Cuisine - Northern Countries”.

Since 2004 this has been an annual event and part of a research project conducted by sophomore students in the Department of Human Nutrition and Dietetics. This year, 13 countries were chosen to participate in the Festival; Canada, North America, Britain, France, Finland, Italy, Spain, Turkey, Russia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Australia.

The inauguration was attended by Rev. Fr. Hady Mahfouz, USEK President, and Rev. Fr. Joseph Wakim, Dean of the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences; in addition to a number of ambassadors and consulates of the participating countries, and many students and visitors.

In her speech, Ms. Reine Barbar, Academic Secretary of the organizing Faculty, emphasized that “… this project aims to shed light on the relation between the customs of various civilizations and the nutritional quality of food… It was developed by the Faculty to become an annual tasting festival; wherein students prepare the stands for the participating countries and offer the traditional dishes of each country”. She added “… this academic project allows students to consolidate their theoretical knowledge through practice. Moreover, the Faculty aims, through this type of project, to empower students and promote their entrepreneurial and innovative spirit”.

This is the 9th consecutive year in which this Festival has been held. 46 sponsors have participated and have contributed in adding a professional dimension to the event. The Festival also included a number of artistic and folklore shows performed by representatives of the participating countries.