Our second time meeting as partners brought us on April 24-25 2024 to the wonderful Krokom Municipality in Jämtland County, Sweden, and our hosts Krokoms kommun Krokoms kommun – Krokoms kommun. Not even some lost luggage could dampen our enthusiasm to meet again in person and work together over 2 days.
It was just above freezing at our home of Wången conference facility in Alsen (In English — Wången (wangen.se)), but the welcome was so warm. Ulla even got up extra early to make us a Swedish cardamom cake. Our 3 Kitchens team is working to empower migrant women by co-creating 3 pathways for volunteering, employment & entrepreneurship rooted in their culinary heritage. Delighted to meet again in person, our team shared our experiences hosting our Volunteer Workshops and piloting our Volunteer Guide in Sweden, Ireland, France, and the Netherlands.
We laid the foundations for developing our Employability Programme which will provide training, job search advisory supports to increase job applications, interviews, and successful job placements, facilitate mentorship opportunities and networking events for participants, fostering a supportive community network to bridge the gap between training and employment. Most importantly, we were joined in our team by amazing women who not only shared their personal insights of the importance of bringing their culinary heritage to their new home of Sweden. We also set out our work plan for the rest of 2024.
In the afternoon, we travelled to Tina’s Praliner Startsidan – Tinas Praliner, located in the middle of Jämtland’s mountain nature. Exclusive pralines, truffles and chocolate of the highest quality are produced here. They can be found, among other things, in well-stocked deli shops, in cafes and hotels around Sweden. With solid know-how and a sense of taste and form, unique collections of confectionery are created. Small-scale and with feeling, Tina shared her entrepreneurship experiences, the challenges but also the wonderful opportunities in the food industry.
We also enjoyed a study visit with KG Rök och Chark in Alsen. That evening, we were in for an amazing culinary adventure. Our hosts cooked multicultural food, prepared with love and inspiration by some of the project’s target group, migrant women with an interest in food and culture, We enjoyed Kapsa, a dish from Sudan and vegetarian Zigni with Injera from Eritrea. We were joined by Ms Maria Jacobsson of the Municipality for a very enjoyable evening.
The next project meeting of 3 Kitchens will be hosted by Momentum, in Leitrim, Ireland at the end of October.
