[Reporter Zhang Yingrong, Taipei report] Every year, Fo Guang Shan Fo Guang University participates in the International Vegetarian Culture Festival. This year, the Industry-University-Research Incubation Center and the Department of Creative Vegetarian Industry cooperated to participate in the "2025 International Vegetarian Culture Festival", bringing savory foods, desserts, and many Fo Guang University delicacies, attracting many people to taste the food made by teachers and students. Although the process was a big challenge for this group of students who participated for the first time, everyone enjoyed it.
Today (17) is the second day of the Vegetarian Culture Festival. The abbot of Fo Guang Shan, Venerable Xin Bao, also came to the scene to encourage the disciples of Fo Guang and took photos with the teachers and students. This year, Associate Professor Wu Shiwen from the Vegetarian Department led students to participate in the exhibition. It was a first-time experience for both teachers and students. Wu Shiwen said that it was a big challenge and he hoped to provide the best service to customers in the limited exhibition space. Therefore, after discussion between the Vegetarian Department and the Breeding Center, seating areas were set up in the stalls so that people can rest and enjoy their meals.
Since May 31 is the Dragon Boat Festival, the Vegetarian Department of Foshan University prepared rice dumplings for sale. Wu Shiwen said that about 700 dumplings were made to let students experience the process of making rice dumplings. If consumers here like the dumplings, they can also buy a bunch to take home.
As Wu Shiwen specializes in baking, this year's vegetarian food expo is different from previous years and he brought a variety of snacks, especially the Golden Date Brownie Cake, which is a vegan and gluten-free pastry. It recently won the gold medal in an international competition in Vietnam, attracting many people to try it.
Wu Shiwen said that the Golden Date Brownie Cake uses ingredients such as nuts, tofu and soy milk. The judges were also amazed when they tasted it. They felt that the taste was similar to that of cakes containing eggs and milk, and no flour was added. It is an additional option for people who are allergic to wheat. Since vegetarian baking is not very popular yet, he hopes to let more people know about it.
Liang Ciqi, manager of the incubation center, said that in addition to promoting vegetarian food, the purpose of participating in the exhibition is also to enable students to apply what they have learned, such as from preparatory work, exhibition venue layout to actual operation. "Students understand that participating in an exhibition is not as simple as starting at 9 am and ending at 6 pm." For example, teachers and students of the vegetarian department only slept about 4 hours a day during this period, but because of the feedback and interaction from consumers, the students enjoyed doing it.
The breeding center brought Buddhist products such as Sishen Soup, Shuxin Roselle Tea, Jingxin Lemon Tea, and Tamarind Fruit to the scene. These products are made from organic products from small farmers in various counties and cities. The teachers then provide the formulas and lead the students to develop the results.
