Gokongwei-led industrial powerhouse Universal Robina Corp. has forayed into specialty education with the opening of its first baking school, which seeks to catalyze innovations in food manufacturing.
Baker John Academy, which is under the URC Flour and Pasta Division, is housed in Robinsons Exxa Tower along E. Rodriguez Jr. Avenue (C5 Road) in Quezon City.
The school was opened to help URC customers expand their portfolio of flour- and pasta-based products. It seeks to offer ways to level up their baking skills and competencies and assist them in setting up their baking operations, URC said.
“We want to give them a helping hand, so they can expand their businesses faster through innovations and efficiencies,” said Ellison Lee, business unit general manager of URC Flour and Pasta Division.
The school will develop its own recipes, as well as retail its branded bread products. It will also sell specialty products, including cheese rolls, “ensaymada,” and revel and carrot bars.
The school will help test and gather consumer feedback on products in the research and development (R&D) phase.
For now, Baker John will cater to URC’s current and potential customers. It plans to eventually open to anyone keen on learning how to bake.
As part of its initiatives, it will sponsor competitions for senior high school and college students taking up baking and pastry production courses.
Baker John’s facility in Quezon City will have a laboratory with 10 workstations that can handle up to 50 participants.
An adjacent kiosk and R&D laboratory will showcase the school’s newly developed products.
The URC Flour and Pasta Division is one of the country’s top flour millers.