The National Association of Care Catering (NACC) will be celebrating the 25th Anniversary of their prestigious Care Catering Chef of the Year competition in 2025.
The 25th Anniversary celebrations will be launched at an event hosted at the House of Lords, 6th February, where the current Chef of the Year, Samuel Sewell of Wellington Vale Care Home, Waterlooville will join previous winners and guests to give the 2025 competition a rousing start.
Building on the success of the 2024 competition that attracted record numbers of entries, the NACC is expecting the numbers to rise to even greater proportions for 2025. Care chefs working across the sector – from residential homes to community services such as meals on wheels – are invited to enter and showcase their specific skills and knowledge.
Catering for the care sector has never been so challenging or rewarding. With one million people over the age of 65 malnourished and the number of older people at risk of malnutrition even greater, chefs catering for older people in care homes and in the community have a duty of care to ensure the meals they produce are nutritionally beneficial and meet specific dietary requirements, as well as being appetising, appealing and delicious. Now in its silver jubilee year, the NACC’s Care Chef of the Year competition challenges all care chefs to do just that.
Entrants must create and substantiate a delicious and nutritionally balanced two-course menu, main and dessert, suitable for service users in a care setting. The combined food cost for both courses is also to be no more than £4.50 per head based on three portions, reflecting the restricted budgets care chefs often have to maximise.
The competition raises the profile of the care catering sector and champions the dedication, flair and skillset required of those working within it to continually raise standards.
To mark the anniversary, a new website dedicated to the Care Chef of the Year competition will be launched at the event.
Entries will be welcomed from mid-February, with the Regional Heats taking place in June and July, alongside the Regional Summer Seminars (dates and venues to be confirmed). This year will see the introduction of a new online entry platform, streamlining the experience for chefs and judges.
Speaking before the event, Neel Radia, National Chair of the NACC said, “The NACC Care Chef of the Year competition, has become a well-respected, established annual event, which showcases the immense skills and creativity by chefs across the care industry. For the NACC Care Chef competition to reach the milestone of 25 years is testament to the value the competition is held at across the industry.
We encourage all chefs working across the Care Sector to enter this year’s milestone 25-year competition.”
Steve Munkley, Lead Judge for the competition said: “To have maintained a competition over so many years is a testament to the Association and what it stands for. Since I have been involved with the competition, I have seen a growing interest in the number of entries and certainly the standards delivered in the regional heats have been very encouraging. This sector certainly has some talented chefs.”
The NACC is delighted to confirm that Unilever Food Solutions will, once again, be the Headline Sponsors along with their longstanding event sponsor, the Worshipful Company of Cooks. In conjunction with the exciting new plans for 2025, we see new sponsors on board for the competition, including crockery sponsor, Foodcare Systems, small equipment sponsor, Metcalfe Catering Equipment, heavy equipment sponsor, Rational UK. and hygiene sponsors Blueleaf Care.
For more information on the NACC Care Chef of the Year 2025 competition and to register your interest in entering click here.
