Songpa-gu Launches 'Songpa Culinary Creation Center' to Support Employment and Startups for Middle-Aged Adults

‘Sinjungnyeon Saeilchajgi Project Songpa Yori Changjakso’ Promotion... Cooking Programs, Employment and Startup Consulting... Supporting Job Creation and Economic Independence

[Asia Economy Reporter Jong-il Park] Songpa-gu (Mayor Park Seong-su) announced on the 4th that it will launch the ‘Songpa Culinary Creation Center’ project to support job creation, including distinctive employment and entrepreneurship for the middle-aged and older generation.

The Songpa Culinary Creation Center is Songpa-gu’s ‘Middle-aged and Older Generation New Job Search Project’ aimed at supporting the social re-entry of middle-aged and older adults in their 40s to 60s who have experienced career interruptions.

This year, it was selected for the city-district upward and cooperative job creation contest project, securing a budget of 195 million KRW.

Songpa-gu incorporated and utilized ‘cooking’-related content such as the trending food industry, K-FOOD Hallyu, and shared kitchens into the job creation project.

First, the ‘Songpa Culinary Creation Center,’ equipped with professional kitchen facilities to conduct cooking and other experiential programs, will open in Garak-dong in mid-month. Cooking programs will be conducted at the Songpa Culinary Creation Center for middle-aged and older adults with experience in the culinary and food service industries.

Various programs are prepared, including ▲Making medicinal food that overcomes fine dust and viruses with professional instructors ▲Manufacturing and supplying lunchboxes for office workers and snacks for daycare centers and kindergartens ▲Korean cooking experience for domestic and foreign participants ▲One-day K-FOOD shared kitchen classes for foreigners.

Additionally, participants can receive startup incubating and business consulting, making it very useful. Cooking programs and consulting will start in mid-March and will all be free of charge.

The district explained that the ultimate goal of this project is to help the middle-aged and older generation learn food preparation and production methods to generate income and enable sustainable economic independence through future cooperative establishment and linkage with village enterprises.

Fifteen students who wish to participate in the Songpa Culinary Creation Center project will be recruited from the 11th to the 18th. Middle-aged and older Songpa-gu residents in their 40s to 60s with experience in the culinary and food service industries can participate, and those holding relevant certifications will be given preferential selection.

Those interested in participating can inquire at the Songpa-gu Job Policy Division (☎2147-4915). For more detailed information, please refer to the Songpa-gu website (www.songpa.go.kr).

The district is also recruiting one general manager and one cooking assistant to lead this project effectively. The general manager will receive a monthly salary of 2.5 million KRW, and the cooking assistant will receive 2.2 million KRW per month. Preference will be given to those with experience working in social economy sectors such as social enterprises and cooperatives.

Furthermore, the district plans to review the operational results of the Songpa Culinary Creation Center this year and expand its operation in the mid to long term.

Park Seong-su, Mayor of Songpa-gu, stated, “It is no exaggeration to say that the middle-aged and older generation plays a central role in economic activities,” adding, “Through the ‘Songpa Culinary Creation Center,’ we will wholeheartedly support the middle-aged and older generation to realize their dreams of employment and entrepreneurship by leveraging their careers and experiences and to sustain economic independence.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.