LACA announces sponsorship deal for School Chef of the Year competition with Premier Foods
The 2019 competition will be launched at the LACA Main Event on July 11 at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole.
The competition has been running for over 25 years and every year receives significant interest from both the industry and consumers with extensive TV and press coverage. It is operated to fit with school food standards that every school in the country is asked to adhere to and that form the basis of the menus that provide every five to seven year old in England with a school lunch through the government’s Universal Infant Free School Meals programme.
The new sponsorship agreement will give the industry judges an opportunity to review the competition criteria and to align it further with current school food standards and consumer eating trends. It will also allow the team to modernise the marketing and entry processes.
Neil Porter, LACA Chair of Events, said: “We are very excited about this new partnership. McDougalls is an ideal brand to support SCOTY as it grows and develops into one of the industry’s highest profile chef competitions.
"The team at Premier Foods bring an extensive knowledge of the education catering sector, which will help us to make the competition easier to enter, and more exciting and dynamic for competitors and observers alike.”
Sarah Robb, channel marketing manager at Premier Foods, added: “We are delighted to be announcing our new sponsorship of SCOTY, which has such a credible reputation within the industry. We are looking forward to delving head first into the competition mechanic and entry process to make it an easier and more attractive opportunity for caterers.
“Our McDougalls range of flour based mixes offer an easy to use base for a range of sweet and savoury dishes, so school chefs can really get their creative juices flowing when developing and mastering their school compliant recipes for the competition."
At the 2019 competition, current School Chef of the Year, Michael Goulston from Peartree Spring Primary School, Hertfordshire, will be cooking his winning dishes for all visitors and delegates to taste at The Main Stand. The winner of the LACA School Chef of the Year 2019 will be announced in March 2019.