Perttu Järvenpää enrolled in the AgriCulinary training and the restaurant management studies at Perho Culinary, Tourism and Business College for the same reason. A newly graduated chef interested in entrepreneurship, he wants to understand the challenges of the Finnish food system and how it needs to be transformed towards greater sustainability.

In the AgriCulinary training, he feels he has seen firsthand the true origins of food and how it is purchased or ends up in restaurants.

“I have learned to make high-quality food without wasting raw materials. Almost all parts of an animal carcass and fish can be used. A vegetable pulled from the ground can be utilized without wasting a single leaf.”

During the training, students visited farms, such as the Haltija biodynamic farm in Lempäälä and the Bovik organic farm. At the partner school, Denmark’s ZBC College, they learned about grain production, seaweed harvesting, processing, and its use in cooking.

“We harvested seaweed on the Danish coast of the Baltic Sea. It was interesting because the ice cover on the Finnish coast prevents photosynthesis in seaweed, and therefore, it does not grow in Finnish conditions.”

“At ZBC College, we also slaughtered and skinned rabbits for food. A chef should indeed know the journey of meat, fish, grain, and vegetables in their purest form to the customer’s plate.”

Perttu Järvenpää graduated as a chef from Perho Culinary, Tourism and Business College in May 2024. During his studies, he pursued a pathway in food production management at Haaga-Helia, and he continues to work towards a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality Management.