Country Range Student Chef Challenge 2018 Launches

One of the most prestigious competitions in the student catering calendar, the Country Range Student Chef Challenge, has officially launched for 2018 with the contest now open for lecturers and students to register for an entry pack. 

The Country Range Student Chef Challenge requires teams of three full-time students to plan, cook and present a three-course, three-cover meal that looks sublime, is rich in flavour and most importantly showcases the student’s cooking skills and techniques. 

The 2018 challenge is guaranteed to have some international flair and test the student’s knowledge of world flavours as the theme is ‘Around the World in 3 Spices’. 

Coral Rose, Managing Director of the Country Range Group, said:

“The Country Range Student Chef Challenge champions the chefs of the future and provides a brilliant platform for students to showcase their skills and talent to key influencers and employers within the foodservice industry. I would urge all chef lecturers to consider entering a team as it is a wonderful opportunity for their students to gain competition experience plus the rewards if you win are fantastic, not only for the students but for the college as a whole.”

Applications, Timings and Deadlines

As the start of term can be an incredibly busy period for students, lecturers and colleges, the challenge is launching in June to provide more time to plan, prepare, test dishes and finalise menus.

Chef lecturers and colleges across the UK are being urged to enter and can register their interest by clicking here to receive an entry pack.

Applications need to be submitted by the 30th November 2017 before the paper judging stage. The teams that make it through the live regional heats will then do battle in the Live Theatre at Hotelympia in London (5-8^th March 2018) in front of the country’s leading chefs and operators.

Country Range Student Chef Challenge

Now in its 24^th year, the long-running Country Range Student Chef Challenge provides full time hospitality and catering college students with the perfect platform to improve cooking skills, knowledge and technique, while developing real life experience under intense pressure and competition situations.    

Run in partnership with the Craft Guild of Chefs, who provide competition-standard judging and detailed feedback to the students, the winning team will also be given the opportunity to work with the Craft Guild’s culinary team at a future event to be confirmed.  Previous winning teams have been given the opportunity to compete at the Culinary Olympics and cook for the country’s leading chefs at the Craft Guild of Chefs Annual Awards.

The 2017 Challenge Winners

The 2017 challenge saw the all-female team of Iona Duncan, Agnieska Dudko and Katarazyna Hospodarewska from Ayrshire College win the coveted crown in a hotly contested final at ScotHot, Scotland’s biggest food, drink and hospitality show. As part of their prize, the talented trio won a unique opportunity to work with the Craft Guild’s culinary team in catering for over a thousand guests at the Craft Guild of Chefs’ Annual Awards 2017.

Annmarie Farr, lecturer of the winning team from Ayrshire College, explained the benefits the challenge offers:

“The Country Range Student Chef Challenge is one of the biggies. It’s a fantastic, once-in-a-lifetime experience and the girls will remember it forever. It is the pinnacle of their careers so far and it looks brilliant on the girls’ CVs. Winning has brought fantastic publicity to the college too and has helped us develop a reputation as a top catering college.”

About Country Range: With 25 years of heritage servicing the UK’s innovative foodservice sector, Country Range is the leading independent foodservice brand and now offers over 850 products, all developed exclusively for professional caterers. Covering grocery, chilled, frozen and non-food, Country Range is widely recognised by caterers as a trusted and reliable brand delivering consistent quality and value for money without compromising on taste and flavour. The brand is developed and produced by the Country Range Group and is distributed exclusively by the 13 independent wholesalers that make up the Group.