Reaching Nearly 10,000 People Over Four Years, O SENTAI Expands
Malaysian Culinary Experiences for Visit Malaysia and Deepens
Collaboration with JCIPJ
KUALA LUMPUR, 12 September 2026 — From a tabletop game to a food education
ecosystem connecting education, culture, tourism, health, the environment and communities,
social enterprise O SENTAI, now entering its fourth year, is expanding the impact of food
education with Malaysia’s diverse culinary heritage as its starting point.
In conjunction with Visit Malaysia, O SENTAI also plans to leverage its board game Winner
of Delicacies to promote Malaysian culinary culture and develop more engaging food tourism
experiences.
O SENTAI founder Foo Ching Yee said Winner of Delicacies has sold more than 1,200 sets
since receiving recognition at the 2023 Selangor Tourism Revival Competition. Today, it
reaches nearly 10,000 people over 4 years through schools, community programmes, family
activities, corporate training and various educational initiatives.
Centred on Malaysian food culture, the board game features 38 distinctive food cards,
allowing participants to discover local dishes while exploring the culinary characteristics of
different states, ethnic communities and regions, ultimately gaining a deeper appreciation of
Malaysia’s rich and diverse food heritage.
From a Board Game to Schools, Communities and
Tourism
Over the years, Winner of Delicacies has expanded from primary and secondary schools
and higher education institutions to family-based nature learning, community cultural
activities, corporate training and cross-cultural exchanges.
In the process, a simple board game has become an accessible gateway for people of
different ages to learn about food.
1 Winner of Delicacies is currently available at more than 20 cultural, creative and souvenir
retail locations nationwide, covering Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Penang, Perak and Sabah,
enabling more Malaysians and international visitors to discover the country’s multicultural
food heritage through play.
Discovering Malaysia Through a Board Game
Feedback from participants has also allowed O SENTAI to see new possibilities for food
education.
Through their first experience with Winner of Delicacies, participants have become more
aware of the differences between the culinary cultures of Malaysia’s various communities
and have begun exploring signature dishes from different states and regions.
Some travellers have even transformed the 38 Winner of Delicacies food cards into their
own “Malaysian Food Exploration Checklist”, using the cards to search for, taste and
photograph Malaysian specialities during their travels.
A single card, therefore, represents more than just a dish. It can become an entry point into
discovering a place, a piece of history and a culture.
Foo said O SENTAI hopes participants will go beyond simply knowing the name of a dish
and begin understanding where it comes from, why it developed in a particular place, and
the communities, land and ways of life behind it.
Food Education Should Not Be Confined to the
Classroom
Food transcends age, geography, ethnicity and background, allowing Winner of Delicacies to
create connections beyond the game itself.
In activities involving families and senior citizens, the board game has served as a medium
for intergenerational communication and family interaction. In schools and other institutions,
it can also provide an engaging entry point for learning about Malaysian culture, nutrition and
dietary issues.
During exchanges with academics involved in the Malaysian Research Institute on Ageing
(MyAgeing) at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), it was shared that games such as Winner of
Delicacies, which involve recognition, memory and interaction, could potentially support
cognitive engagement and memory exercises among older adults.
This also opens up possibilities for such games to be further developed as tools to support
learning and memory training among senior citizens.
Beyond introducing local cuisine, O SENTAI also aims to strengthen participants’ ability to
make informed food choices, including recognising different types of food, reading nutrition
labels and developing healthier eating habits.
2 The aim is to equip participants with better judgement when faced with the thousands of food
choices available in everyday life.
At the same time, O SENTAI incorporates farm and nature-based experiences into its
programmes, helping participants understand where food comes from while learning to
appreciate food, reduce waste and recognise the close relationship between the natural
environment and everyday diets.
For children, food education is further extended to essential life skills, including recognising
ingredients and learning basic washing, preparation, cutting and cooking techniques. This
allows children to build greater independence while learning about food.
Feedback and experiences from schools, families, communities and participants of different
age groups have further reinforced O SENTAI’s direction: food education should not take
place only in classrooms — it should become part of everyday life.
Four Years of Cross-Sector Collaboration: From
Schools to Businesses, Tourism and Communities
Over the past four years, O SENTAI has continuously expanded the applications of food
education through cross-sector collaboration.
Beginning with educational and family activities, its initiatives have gradually expanded into
universities, schools, kindergartens, businesses, tourism, communities and
sustainability-related programmes, positioning food as a medium connecting education,
culture, health, the environment and society.
Over the years, O SENTAI’s network of collaborations has spanned government agencies,
educational institutions, businesses and social organisations, including Universiti
Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), INTI International University & Colleges, Universiti Putra
Malaysia (UPM), Tourism Selangor, Menteri Besar Selangor Incorporated (MBI), Tzu Chi
International School, Fatimas, Hock Soon, Biogreen, Etblisse, RE Sustainable Enterprise
and Eco Lestari Strategy, among others.
In education, O SENTAI brings board games and experiential learning into schools, allowing
students of different ages to discover nutrition, local cuisine, food sources and environmental
issues through play.
In family and community activities, meanwhile, food becomes a medium for interaction,
communication and learning across generations.
Collaborations with tourism and cultural organisations have also enabled O SENTAI to
gradually explore a “food education + cultural tourism” model.
Beginning with a local dish, participants can go on to discover the communities, land, history
and lifestyles behind it. O SENTAI hopes food can become more than a culinary experience
during a journey — it can also serve as a window through which local and international
visitors discover Malaysia.
3 Collaborations in the corporate and sustainability sectors have further brought food
education beyond the school environment. Through workshops, board games, experiential
activities and various cross-sector projects, O SENTAI explores issues such as healthy
eating, food waste, environmental sustainability and social responsibility.
Foo said: “We are very grateful to the government agencies, educational institutions,
businesses and community partners who have been willing to explore these possibilities
together with O SENTAI throughout our journey.
“We may come from different sectors, but ultimately, we can all find a common language
through ‘food’. This is also why we hope to build a broader food education ecosystem in the
next stage of our journey.”
From schools to communities and from businesses to tourism, O SENTAI hopes to connect
with more cross-sector partners so that food education is no longer limited to a single activity
or a set of educational materials.
Instead, it can become a form of everyday learning that continues in classrooms, homes,
around dining tables, on farms, in communities and even during travel.
From 38 Cards to a Complete Food Education
Ecosystem
Four years of educational experience and cross-sector collaboration have laid an important
foundation for O SENTAI’s next stage of development.
As it enters its fourth year, O SENTAI aims to further systematise the educational content,
partnership networks and experiential learning models it has developed, building a more
comprehensive food education ecosystem centred around food.
The ecosystem will progressively connect games and curriculum development, meals and
food product development, nature experiences, cultural and tourism experiences, and
community activities.
In the future, Winner of Delicacies will no longer be merely a board game. Instead, it will
serve as a gateway into this broader food ecosystem.
Participants may begin by discovering food through a game, deepen their knowledge
through educational programmes, understand food sources through farms and learn how
ingredients are transformed in the kitchen, before extending these experiences into
curriculum development, food product development, local culture, tourism experiences and
community participation.
For O SENTAI, food is more than something consumed by the body. It is also a medium for
understanding culture, connecting people and appreciating the relationship between land
and nature.
4 Foo described the original 38 cards of Winner of Delicacies as seeds that O SENTAI hopes
will continue to grow.
“We hope these 38 cards will continue to create more possibilities for food education,
allowing more people to move from simply ‘playing a game’ to recognising food,
understanding food, appreciating food and ultimately developing a deeper connection with
it,” she said.
Supporting Visit Malaysia by Helping Travellers
Discover Malaysia Through Food
Tourism will be one of the key directions as O SENTAI expands its food education
ecosystem into its next phase.
In conjunction with Visit Malaysia, O SENTAI plans to explore collaborations with various
organisations, including Tourism Selangor, with the aim of transforming Malaysia’s rich
culinary heritage into tourism experiences that are both educational and interactive.
Malaysia’s different states, ethnic communities and localities each have their own distinctive
culinary traditions. Behind a local dish are often stories connected to history, the natural
environment, agriculture, migration and ways of life.
O SENTAI hopes to bring these elements together by further integrating board games, local
cuisine, cultural stories and on-site experiences.
This means Winner of Delicacies could eventually become more than a game played around
a table — it could become a “food map” for travellers exploring Malaysia.
Travellers could first discover a dish through the game, then visit its place of origin to find it,
taste it and learn the story behind it.
The goal is for visitors to do more than simply “eat Malaysian food”. Through food, they can
discover Malaysia, understand Malaysia and remember Malaysia.
JCIPJ and O SENTAI Deepen Collaboration in Food
Education and International Cultural Exchange
Meanwhile, JCI Petaling Jaya (JCIPJ) incorporated Winner of Delicacies into an international
cultural exchange programme in July this year.
As part of the Dragon Ambassador programme with JCI City Hong Kong, JCIPJ organised
an interactive Winner of Delicacies session at SJK(C) Kheow Bin, allowing students from
Hong Kong and Malaysia to discover Malaysia’s multicultural food heritage through the
board game.
Through fun and interactive activities featuring Malaysian food cards, students from Hong
Kong and Malaysia learned about signature dishes associated with different communities
5 and regions, strengthening their understanding and memory of Malaysia’s diverse culinary
culture.
The activity also incorporated values such as appreciating food, reducing food waste and
adopting lower-carbon eating habits, making environmental and food education more
relevant to everyday life and more engaging for young participants.
Building on this collaboration, JCIPJ and O SENTAI have signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) to deepen their partnership and lay the foundation for further
collaboration in 2027.
At the MOU signing ceremony, JCIPJ Vice President International Affair Liew Teck Lai
represented the chapter in signing the agreement with O SENTAI founder Foo Ching Yee,
formalising the partnership between the two organisations.
Both parties will explore further opportunities in food education, children’s development,
community programmes and international cultural exchange, allowing food education to
serve as a bridge connecting local communities with international youth.
Merdeka Promotion Extended Until 30 September
In conjunction with Malaysia’s 69th National Day, O SENTAI is currently offering special
promotions on its educational board games, enabling more families, educators and members
of the public to discover healthy eating and Malaysian food culture through play.
Portion Masters focuses on healthy and balanced eating. Through interactive gameplay,
participants learn how to create nutritionally balanced meals, understand appropriate food
portions and develop healthier eating habits.
Winner of Delicacies, meanwhile, takes players on a culinary journey across Malaysia,
introducing representative dishes from different states and the distinctive culinary traditions
and cultures behind them.
In conjunction with the Merdeka promotion, customers can enjoy discounts of up to 20% on
board game purchases.
The promotion runs until 30 September 2026, with free nationwide delivery across Malaysia.
Through the Merdeka campaign, O SENTAI hopes families, schools and members of the
public can celebrate Malaysia’s multicultural identity while sharing stories, discovering local
flavours and bringing conversations about health, culture and food education back to the
dining table.
