QIFF pushes simple, yet nutritious, meals

The Qatar International Food Festival (QIFF) 2017 is encouraging residents and visitors to take part in the workshops and coaching sessions at the Hotel Park, aimed at promoting and raising awareness on healthy living.Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) said the culinary celebration this year offers festival-goers several ways to explore healthy lifestyle options apart from its designated health zone dubbed as ‘Care.’In collaboration with the Qatar Cancer Society (QCS), the festival holds a series of health competitions every day for families and visitors.Run by a locally-based nutritionist, QTA noted that the interactive health workshops at the ‘Learn Zone’ give participants an opportunity to prepare simple but delicious and nutritious snacks and meals.Upcoming workshops include Culinary Beauty (Thursday from 5pm), Power Up Your Health (Friday from 8pm) and Eat the Rainbow (Saturday from 4pm).“Food carries many cultural, social, and entertainment expressions, but most fundamentally, food is nourishment for the body and a foundation for health,” QTA’s festivals and events director Mashal Shahbik said.“We are committed to provide a platform at QIFF for people to explore and learn about healthy food choices, and are grateful to our partners for making the learning experience fun and interactive for our visitors,” she noted.2B Nourished founder Kim Nawbar, who runs the workshops, said the festival this year introduces a series of healthy workshops and healthy coaching for the first time.“The response has been tremendous so far as participants have enjoyed learning quick and simple steps to upgrade their food preparations.” “I’m really excited for the future of healthy living in Qatar as there is a real sense of a community in the drive to make lifestyle changes and learn how to be better nourished,” Nawbar added.Returning for the third consecutive year at QIFF, QCS is leveraging the festival’s popularity to create platform for awareness-raising around the role of healthy food choices in the prevention and treatment of cancer.The booth located in the “Taste” zone runs daily competitions with valuable prizes for both children and adults.In a statement, QCS marketing co-ordinator Omar al-Twaissi said: “The festival‘s kick-off in March coincided with the World Health Organisation’s month designated to ‘Colon Cancer Awareness’ month, making our presence at QIFF even more relevant to the work we do with the community.” “Visitors of all ages are welcome to pass by our booth to learn a little and have a chance at winning a prize at one of our daily competitions,” he added.