International Food and Drink Exhibition 2015: Full line up announced

A stellar lineup of chefs will be appearing at the International Food and Drink Exhibition at ExCeL Centre London in March 2015. Guaranteed to be one of the highlights of the industry show, The Skillery will feature a showcase of live demonstrations from people like The National Chef of the Year 2014, Russell Bateman, head chef of Collette’s Restaurant at The Grove in Hertfordshire, and chairman of the Craft Guild of Chefs, Christopher Basten, who will be preparing a selection of his own ‘golden dishes’ to mark the association’s 50th anniversary next year. Martin Bates, chief executive of the Guild, said: “The Skillery is always a key attraction at IFE and this year, we have so many big names to dazzle and inspire visitors, whether they are chefs themselves, run a foodservice operation that wants to set itself apart, or are in charge of product procurement.” Organised by the Craft Guild, The Skillery aims to enlighten IFE visitors with ways to improve their culinary skills, hone menu creation expertise, increase profit margins and reduce waste. The other demonstrators are as follows: Adam Handling - British Chef of the Year 2014 and current head chef at Adam Handling at Caxton in St James’s Park Damian Wawrzyniak – Award winning chef and owner of Fine Art of Dining Jose Graziosi – Head chef at Hotel Felix in Cambridge Steven Edwards – Head chef at South Lodge Hotel, Horsham, and winner of MasterChef: The Professionals 2013 Steve Walpole – Owner at Steve Walpole Ltd and former senior executive development chef at Gate Gourmet for the likes of British Airways First Class Greg Olejarka - Executive sous chef at Oriental Mandarin, London, and guest judge in graduations exams at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu School of culinary arts Ben Bartlett – TV chef who runs his own food and drink company advising food manufacturers and is the author