From sustainable development goals insight to construct culinary creativity competence scale

Purpose This study mainly investigated the construction of a sustainable culinary creativity competence scale from the perspective of sustainable development goals to assess the professional sustainability of chefs' work. Design/methodology/approach The questionnaire survey method was used in this study, taking chefs as the subjects in Taiwan. A total of 400 questionnaires were sent out and 374 valid ones were collected, with a recovery rate of 93.5%. Findings This study obtained a total of 10 competence dimensions, including sustainable products, product design, culture inheritance, sustainable strategic management, enterprise sustainability management, sustainable management services, culinary aesthetic, creativity inheritance, creative diversity, and professional culinary skill, after validations by exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The results for the scale indicated good discriminant validity, convergent validity, and reliability. Practical implications In practice, managers can use the sustainable culinary creativity competence scale to evaluate employees' sustainability performance and design suitable job-rotation and training plans. Originality/value This study provides valuable insight by developing a sustainable culinary creativity competence scale tailored for culinary professionals. It helps identify sustainability-related skills, training needs, and development opportunities for chefs across various foodservice sectors. By applying this scale, organizations can enhance employee capabilities, strengthen competitive advantages, and support progress toward sustainability goals. The research also offers policy implications for government support systems that nurture sustainable restaurant development.