Amid the sea of high-tech wonders at this year’s Computex, something other than technology would be offered to visitors: the opportunity to enjoy delicious pastries and tea.
For the first time, SunnyHills has been invited to participate at Computex, one of the largest computer and technology trade fairs, which is to be held in Taipei from June 4 to 7, giving people a chance to “enjoy Taiwanese pastries,” SunnyHills founder Michael Sheu (許銘仁) said.
Apart from distributing welcome packages filled with pastries to overseas guests, SunnyHills would also provide one free pineapple cake and a cup of tea to everyone who visits its lounge.
Photo: CNA
This mirrors the unique service offered at SunnyHills’ branches, SunnyHills CEO Joe Shih (施宏漳) said.
The company wants to showcase “something other than technology” that Taiwan has to offer by demonstrating great hospitality, Shih said.
Sheu and Shih are no stranger to this kind of occasion, as the duo have had years of experience in the technology industry.
Sheu is the founder of Asian Information Technology Group, which became a part of WPG Holdings in 2009, one year after he established SunnyHills in his hometown in Nantou County with relatives, including his younger brother, a farmer, and his uncle, a pastry chef.
Shih previously worked as a manager at a few technology companies. He was Taiwan country manager for Conexant Systems, Inc before joining SunnyHills in 2012.
When asked if he specifically sought out individuals with backgrounds in technology to run the brand with him, Sheu said it was not intentional, “but the people I know are all tech people.”
Sheu spoke of the technology involved in some of the products, such as the fine, high-pressure cut from a water jet cutter which ensures that the flavor of banana — a fruit that is difficult to process, as its flavor is easily lost when heated — is retained during the cutting process.
Another example is extending the shelf life of the signature pineapple cakes from 15 days to 45 days by adding a layer of aluminum oxide, a material used by some Japanese companies in semiconductor manufacturing, to the new packaging, Sheu said.
The new packaging is also more than 90 percent more efficient in blocking air and moisture compared with the previous packaging, he added.
“I come from the countryside, and I understand the challenges facing Taiwan’s fruit industry... We have so much good fruit, but we often end up with a surplus,” Sheu said.
It is difficult to sell fresh fruit to overseas markets due to storage issues and import regulations, he added.
Processing fresh fruit would allow it to be stored for longer, and can also be turned into various kinds of desserts which could generate high value, he said.
Sheu said he hopes the brand could introduce Taiwanese fruit to overseas markets in the future.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three