Peter Harren, a captain and head of the “Harren&Partner”- shipping company in Bremen, Germany, wants to do something about food on board ships, which he does not think is good enough. “Good chefs are in short supply at sea,” he says – but he doesn’t stop there, he is doing something about it!
He is taking delivery of a training ship, the Hanseatic Explorer, this autumn. This ship is 48 metres long, 10.40 metres wide and has a draught of 3.52 metres. It will be the workplace for a crew of six – in addition to 12 trainees and a total of 12 passengers. The 12 passengers will have six luxury suites at their disposal and, although they will be guinea pigs for the apprentice chefs and the other trainees on board, they can expect a travel experience far from the usual.
From Hamburg to the Antarctic
The cruise programme, which starts on 8 October in Hamburg and has so far been fixed up to 30 January 2008, mainly includes the Mediterranean in the winter, Germany, Ireland and Scotland from March to May – and then Norway in May and parts of June, followed by Spitzbergen, Iceland, Greenland, Canada and the USA up to October 2007. Thereafter, the ship will sail to the Caribbean and South America, ending up at the ice edge of the Antarctic in January 2008.
The individual cruises last from seven to 21 days, and prices start at Euro 4,700 for a double cabin.
”Good food creates a good atmosphere”
“The quality of ship crews has been declining constantly, as has the quality of ship food,” says Peter Harren. The usual thing has been to bring a restaurant chef on board, but the requirements for a chef on land and at sea are completely different.
A ship’s chef has to be able to plan for the long term. He or she can’t just go out and buy raw materials. Everything has to be on board right from the start.
“In addition to chefs, we are now going to train deck and engine cadets. Good food is a necessity for a good environment and good atmosphere on board. We’re starting off with the food, and I expect this will also make the learning environment for the cadets good – with a satisfied crew and passengers as a result.”