The reality show Escola de Sabores (School of Flavours), starring school cooks from traditional communities, premieres on 20 December. The programme is the result of a partnership between the National Fund for Education Development (FNDE/MEC), the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC/MRE) and the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil and will be broadcast on Band and the Sabor & Arte channel.
The programme aims to highlight and give visibility to the work of school cooks, nutritionists and school food managers.
With the same directors as Master Chef, this edition of the reality show will feature recipes developed by cooks from indigenous, quilombola and riverine communities. The programme also shows what life is like in these communities, highlighting the knowledge of these professionals and their role in providing school meals to millions of Brazilian students.
Broadcasted at noon on Band and at 9 p.m. on Sabor & Arte, the show will have eight weekly episodes, always on Saturdays, with reruns on Sundays at 8 p.m. on Terraviva.
Each episode will feature culinary challenges that reflect the schools and territories, traditions and local ingredients of each group, shedding light on realities rarely portrayed on television.
With recognised expertise in gastronomic productions, Newco, a production company belonging to the Bandeirantes Group, is responsible for producing the reality show, which is recorded at Band’s studios in São Paulo.
Special guests
The reality show is also a platform for visibility for real characters and traditional voices who work on the front line of school meals in the public education system.
In each episode, renowned chefs and artists from the gastronomic world join the jury to evaluate dishes such as traditional recipes, recipes using leftovers, and healthy desserts.
Escola de Sabores marks a new phase in the project about school cooks, which has already had three previous seasons in different formats, including the reality show Vida de Merendeira, aired in 2024 on the Sabor & Arte channel.
Now, with refined artistic direction, a competitive structure and an expanded narrative focus, the production values school meals as a pillar of education and health and reinforces the importance of the food culture of indigenous quilombola and riverine peoples, in addition to showing the dimension of South-South Cooperation in school meals in various countries.
Escola de Sabores (School of Flavours)
Premieres Saturday, 20 December
Broadcast:
Band: Saturdays at 12 noon
Sabor & Arte channel: Saturdays at 9 p.m.
Terraviva channel: Sundays at 8 p.m. (starting 21 December)
Production: Newco Pay TV
Partnership: WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil, FNDE/MEC and ABC/MRE