Scotland Takes Silver in Culinary World Cup 2018

Dec 20, 2018

Scotland’s national culinary team, run by the Scottish Chefs, have returned home from the Culinary World Cup in Luxembourg with a Silver win under their belt.

The team of twelve culinary professionals from across Scotland have achieved their goal of bringing back a medal by achieving Silver in the hot kitchen, after many months of hard work to perfect their craft, in a cook-off with 30 other national culinary teams.

Robbie Penman, team manager and Orry Shand, team captain, meticulously created the menu to reflect Scotland’s exceptional larder, featuring Scottish shellfish in the starter and Scotch Beef PGI in the main course, with judges describing the quality of the produce as “outstanding”.

Led by culinary team director and World Chefs judge, Kevin MacGillivray, this ambitious and talented group of young chefs hail from a range of excellent hotels and restaurants across the country: Robbie Penman, St Andrews Links Trust; Orry Shand, Entier; Jamie MacKinnon, The Seafood Ristorante, St Andrews and Craig Palmer, Entier, alongside pastry chefs Andrew Mackay from Trump Turnberry and Rory Taylor of Entier, with Graham Mitchell from Trump Aberdeen as hot kitchen reserve.  Back-up support was provided by Shona Sutherland Taystful, Blairgowrie; Beth Davies, Gleneagles Hotel and Errin Sweeny; City of Glasgow College.  

Shona also gained a Bronze medal in an individual entry with her stunning chocolate show piece; this was her first time competing in a global competition.

Kevin McGillivray, said:

“I’m incredibly proud of the preparation, hard work and final performance of every member of the team – it was a fantastic effort for such a young group to compete on the world stage. Only their second major competition, this exceptional result will undoubtedly help their development and understanding of what is involved for the Culinary Olympics in Stuttgart February 2020.”

They’ve been fortunate to have such fantastic quality Scottish produce to work with including Scotch Beef PGI; Albert Bartlett potatoes; hand-dived king scallops and razor clams from Sound of Gigha. Loch Fyne Sea Farms drove the day before the competition to Luxembourg to ensure the freshness and quality of product.

All of this could not have been possible without the ongoing generous support from our key sponsors including Scotland Food & Drink; Quality Meat Scotland; Seafood Scotland; Albert Bartlett; Loch Fyne Sea Farms;  HIT Scotland also our Fab 50 supporters

James Withers, chief executive, Scotland Food & Drink, said:

“We are very proud to support the Scottish Culinary Team, and greatly admire their achievements at this coveted, global competition. To win a Silver medal is no mean feat and demonstrates the talent and determination of these exceptional young chefs. They are outstanding ambassadors for Scotland’s food, drink and hospitality sectors. Their winning dishes reflected the quality produce that the country is famous for, and to show this to the world at this major event will only add to our reputation as a Land of Food and Drink.”

In 2019 Scottish Chefs have entered Jamie MacKinnon into the Global Chef Junior competition to compete in Rimini Italy in February with a chance to go to the finals in St Petersburg at the World Chefs Congress in July 2020. 

Notes to editors

Around 75 different nations from the five continents were guests at the Expogast Culinary World Cup, Luxembourg-Kirchberg from 24th-28th November, celebrating a gastronomic festival that meets the highest standards.

This culinary competition, organised by Valel Club Luxembourg, over the 5 days comprised of 30 national senior, 15 national junior, 15 catering and more than 45 regional teams competing for the coveted prizes. On various individual competitions, 750 chefs and food artists attended. This highly awaited contest was the event highlight and combined entertainment, culture and attendance at work on a platform converted into a giant restaurant of 820 seats. 

For further information required please contact Kevin MacGillivray on scottishchefs@gmail.com

The Scottish Chefs were formed in 1994 and is a not-for-profit organization run by a board of management, all of whom are volunteers www.scottishchefs.com