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Over 40 top school chefs from across Britain will compete over the next few months for the title of LACA School Chef of the Year 2013. The competition is run by LACA (Local Authority Caterers Association) and is sponsored by MAGGI from Nestlé Professional.

Ten Regional Finals take place across the country between from January to March when contestants will be battling it out for the regional titles of the competition.

The winner of each event will go on to take part in the National Final in May. The country’s top 10 school chefs will then go head-to-head in a fiercely contested cook off which will result in just one taking the national crown.

Four of the Regional Finals take place this month followed by three in February and the remaining three in March. The first of these events takes place next week with the London Regional Final being held on Thursday, 17th January at Lewisham College, South East London.

In the face of the continuing public sector spending cuts, school chefs are working hard to ensure that school meals stay nutritious and creative and with the ever-increasing strain on family budgets, to keep them as affordable as possible for parents.

Whilst school chefs are under ever growing pressure to do more for less, they still strive to produce dishes that use quality ingredients and also to create meals that have high nutritional value, are tasty and are appealing to children.

This is why School Chef of the Year has been organised annually by LACA for nearly two decades and is perhaps even more important now than in previous years.  The competition aims to convince parents of the vital role healthy school meals can play at a time when the family purse strings are being stretched to the limit, even for daily essentials like food. 

School Chef of the Year is the industry’s premier culinary event exclusively for those in the education catering sector. The competition aims to showcase the high standards of skill, creativity and professionalism among school caterers.

The annual competition puts the preparation, cooking, creativity and presentation skills of school chefs to the test with each entrant required to produce, in just one and a half hours, a healthy balanced two-course meal comprising of a main course and dessert that would appeal to 11-year-olds in school.  A maximum of £1.50 is allowed for the cost of a single meal (i.e. main course and dessert) for one child.

As part of seven different judging criteria which apply at all stages of the competition, contestants must include ingredients that reflect seasonal availability and that have been sourced locally or typify the contestant’s region. The menus of all contestants have been inspired by both traditional and cultural influences as well as the availability of fresh local produce

With school menus having to reflect popular themes from worldwide cuisine in order to appeal to today’s discerning youngsters, competition sponsor, Maggi at Nestlé Professional has  included an extensive selection of its products in the competition basket to help contestants’ enhance the creativity of their menus. Products include Maggi Rich & Rustic Tomato Sauce, Maggi Bouillons, Maggi Original Vegetarian Gravy, Maggi Mashed Potato Flakes and new Maggi Liquid Concentrated Fonds, as well as Maggi Béchamel Sauce, and Maggi Demi Glace Sauce too.

The contestants are required to incorporate a minimum of two Maggi products in their main course and any Nestlé product can be used in their dessert.

Chair of the LACA School Chef of the Year 2013 Judging Panel is Justin Clarke, Food Development Chef for Nestlé Professional. He has extensive experience in the food and professional catering industry and began his career as a chef within the RAF.

Also on the Judging Panel at each 2013 event will be a professional chef judge, a local authority catering professional (Jacqui Webb, LACA), a leading dietician (Jasmine Challis, British Dietetic Association) and two 11-year-old pupil judges from a local school in each location.

The National Winner will receive the LACA School Chef of the Year 2013 trophy, a cash prize, a day’s vocational experience and invitations to a calendar of high profile catering industry events.

Highly Commended Main Course and Highly Commended Dessert prizes are awarded at the Regional Finals at the judges’ discretion and also at the National Final with the winner of each class, receiving special commemorative plaques.

Anne Bull, LACA Chair says: “The LACA School Chef of the Year judging criteria are tough but the skills and standards demonstrated by all the participants across the country, send a clear message to Head Teachers and Governors of all schools, as well as to parents and young people, about how important it is for all schools to adhere to one set of Nutritional Standards for food provision.

“Our talented front line staff need their continued support in order to ensure high quality, nutritious school meals as well as tasty, highly creative and appealing dishes.

“These meals can make a major contribution towards altering eating habits, changing diets and decreasing obesity levels which in turn, research has shown, will help children and young people to achieve their academic and physical potential. School chefs are passionate about the role they play in educating young people about food and encouraging them to eat better.”

Adding his comments, Neil Stephens, managing director, Nestlé Professional says: “Initiatives like LACA School Chef of the Year are a great opportunity to showcase the skills and dedication of those talented individuals who give it their all to feed this country’s children and in many cases, make a positive contribution towards improving diets and eating habits.

“It’s so important that initiatives like LACA School Chef of the Year get the full industry backing they deserve and this is why the Maggi brand from Nestlé Professional continues to lend its support to the competition. Once again, we are proud to be a partner and sponsor and wish all participants in this year’s event the very best of luck.”

LACA School Chef of the Year 2013 Regional Final

London (17 January)  Lewisham College, SE London
Yorkshire & Humber (24 January)  Hull College
Eastern (30 January) Barnfield College, Luton
East Midlands (31 January) Dovecote Primary School, Nottingham
South West (8 February) Plymouth City College
NE & Scotland (11 February)  Gateshead College
Wales (12 February)  Deeside College
West Midlands (14 March) Stoke on Trent College
North West  (15 March)  Manchester College
South East  (19 March)  Brooklands College, Weybridge, Surrey