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André van Dongen is a culinary consultant for Debic, one of FrieslandCampina’s foodservice brands. Not only does he create food concepts for customers, he also contributes to creating content for the ID magazine, which is distributed among chefs in Europe.

“My work is my pride and joy. At birthday parties I soon catch myself talking about my work. I myself but also the people around me are energised by hearing me talk about food. I have the best job in the world and I realise that every single day.”

“I have worked in the catering sector for years, but I knew that I did not want to work in a restaurant kitchen all my life. Now I am mostly busy inspiring people. I think this is my greatest strength. For instance, I help developing food concepts for major customers. Among other things I make the dessert menu for restaurant chain ’t Zusje. Several restaurants in the Netherlands serve the bastogne parfait that we have developed, and we annually sell a total of 150.000 servings of this. That is fantastic. This type of restaurant chains needs constant quality and we can help owners achieve this with our products. Thinking along with them to see how they can create an exquisite dessert using our products gives me a lot of energy.”

There is a story behind every concept I think of.

“Apart from this, I spend 40 percent of my time on creating content for the ID magazine. I want to inspire other chefs and show them that recipes do not have to be complicated. There is a story behind every concept I think of. For example, recently I ate at a two Michelin stars restaurant in Thailand. I sat at the chef’s table and 25 beautiful small dishes came by. Subsequently, I further developed the inspiration gained over there for the Horecava 2019 (trade fair of the catering sector in the Netherlands). Our stand also had a chef’s table and I prepared all kinds of different small dishes for visitors and customers.”

“Our department is continuously looking at trends. Right now, vegetables are hot. Not only because they are healthy, but also because of the versatility in flavour combinations. We respond to this by, for example, making a vegetable edition for ID Magazine. I still find it exciting to work on this magazine every day. I have put my soul in this for about eleven years now. Travelling inspires me. I travel a lot for my work, because when I must think of a concept suitable for all countries, I must know how the cooking is done in certain cultures. I just returned from a five-month sabbatical in Asia. Each country in Asia has its own fascinating culture, but the most fantastic thing is what happens on the streets. In the afternoons, the streets change into one big food market. Football pitches full of food. I can really enjoy this, and I take the experience with me in the stories I want to tell with my concepts.”