The Water Cube turning into the Ice Cube.

Recently a special 70-member catering team proved their professionalism and skills at the 2021 World Wheelchair Curling Championship held in Beijing's National Aquatics Center, paving the way for the upcoming Beijing Olympic Winter Games.

The National Aquatics Center, known as the "Water Cube," has been renovated and frozen into an "Ice Cube" to host both the 2021 World Wheelchair Curling Championship, which concluded on Sunday, and the coming Curling and Wheelchair Curling events for the Beijing Olympic/Paralympic Winter Games in 2022.

Working in one of the six competition venues in Beijing, the caterers were separated into two teams, one outside the venue and the other  inside, to prepare three meals a day for those attending the event.

"For the prevention and control of COVID-19, the catering team has been reduced from its original more than 100 to 70. But our workload remains the same," Liu Jia, catering manager at the National Aquatics Center told the Xinhua News Agency while introducing how they ensure food quality.

Feeding people at the event involves a long supply chain that starts with ingredients loaded onto trucks, which are then taken to designated places to be cooked following pre-designed menus. The finished food is then taken to the venue after being tested.

All the dishes are required to maintain certain temperatures upon arrival, no less than 60 C on the surface of the food and no less than 70 C at its center.

The canteen serves a broad variety of guests from VIPs, technicians and officials to journalists and staff members. This list will be expanded to include audiences at the upcoming Games.

Ensuring the meals high quality is of upmost importance. As Liu puts it, "food safety is just the basic standard of the service."

The catering team has designed an "eight-day cycle" system: High-calorie food is provided at early stages of an event to ensure people's high spirits for the game; a light and nutritious meal is served during the game; and after a match comes a hot and sour dish, which helps eliminate fatigue.

The food service at the 2021 World Wheelchair Curling Championship is also an opportunity and a test for the venue to uncover vulnerabilities within the catering system as the Beijing Olympic Winter Games are less than 100 days away.

Last week, the Beijing 2022 Organizing Committee said at a news conference that the catering service from the selection of the raw material supply base, catering service providers to the food menus have been settled down.

Global Times