Culinary associations: which one is right for you?
If you need help or advice in the culinary industry, where do you go? A number of chefs and culinary staff in the UK are members of professional associations which offer advice and information. The Staff Canteen takes a look at some of the organisations, what they offer to members and how much membership costs.
The Craft Guild of Chefs was established in 1965 as part of the Cookery and Food Association. It aims to increase the standards of professional cooking by increasing awareness, education and training. They work to help their members develop their knowledge, skills and abilities.
The Craft Guild of Chefs also endorses and promotes British and European produce, working with suppliers and manufacturers to create innovative menus and recipes.
They promote and participate in craft skills competitions of all levels both in the UK and internationally, and run The Culinary Academy, which was created to help chefs compete.
The guild works with other organisations on a project campaigning for free school meals and on a scheme to educate families about eating healthily.
Benefits of becoming a member of the Craft Guild of Chefs include access to the guild’s website, special offers from business partners, reduced prices on guild events, access to the quarterly Stockpot magazine, and help and knowledge from members, including experienced competitors and judges.
There are five types of memberships: the member craftsman, master craftsman and associate memberships are all £52.88, the student/trainee membership is £19.98 and the retired membership is £23.50.
To find out more or become a member visit: http://craftguildofchefs.org/
British Culinary Federation
The British Culinary Federation was formed in 2005 by combining the Midlands Association of Chefs, founded in 1978 and the Chefs and Cooks Circle, founded in 1948.
The federation provide scholarships for students and trainees to study, compete and work abroad, provide information and support for members and help their members compete in the UK and abroad.
Their aim is to promote culinary skills throughout the industry.
The benefits of membership include automatic membership into the World Association of Chefs Societies, events including annual dinners and award evenings, access to Culinary News magazine, access to the British Culinary Foundation website which includes events and competitions, a range of craft and business courses, and numerous networking opportunities.
The four types of membership are: junior membership (£25), chef membership (£40.00), associate membership (£50.00) and corporate membership (£125).
For more information or to become a member visit: http://www.britishculinaryfederation.co.uk/
The Federation of Scottish Chefs
The Federation of Scottish Chefs (FSC) was formed in 1994 and supports members through training and competitions.
The FSC fund raises to support members learning both in Scotland and internationally, as well as funding and running the two Scottish culinary teams, senior and junior.
They run the Scottish Culinary Academy which offers training, work experience and field trips to its members.
Membership is from £25, and some of the benefits included are an annual dinner, access to information and training, reduced rates on training courses, networking opportunities, and the opportunity to compete with the national culinary teams.
To become a member or get more information go to: www.scottishchefs.com
Welsh Culinary Association
The Welsh Culinary Association was created in 1993, and aims to raise the profile of the culinary profession in Wales.
The North, Mid and South regions of Wales all have regional committees within the association, and each of the regions has an elected representative on the association’s board.
They support the senior and junior national culinary teams. The senior team is currently ranked seventh in the world.
The association have also supported the Applied Ability Awards (AAA) initiative, a work based qualification, for the last four years.
Membership benefits include automatic membership into the World Association of Chefs Societies and access to information and knowledge from other members.
Associate membership is free, junior membership is £25, premier membership is £35 and group membership is £150.
Visit the site for more information: http://www.welshculinaryassociation.com/
Formed in 1980 as The Institute of Master Chefs, with branches in Great Britain, Holland and America, the Great British section changed its name to the Master Chefs of Great Britain in 1982.
The master chefs offer support and advice to members, and run various competitions for students, including Young Chef of the Year and Young Pastry Chef of the Year.
The membership options are:
Full membership, with a £75 joining fee and annual bill of £95
Team membership, joining fee £75 and annual bill £168
Associate membership with an annual bill of £84
Sous chef membership, £55 annually
Junior membership, £45 annually
Chef’s club, £35 annually
Industry membership, £70 annually
Benefits of membership include a membership certificate, a Master Chefs of Great Britain chef’s jacket for full and team memberships, training diplomas, events and trips, and networking and promotion for the member and their place of work.
Academie of Culinaire de France
The Academie of Culinaire de France was created by the chef Joseph Favre in 1879, under the name The World Union for the Progress of Culinary Arts. This is the oldest culinary association in the world, and there are over 80 branches worldwide.
In 1883 the Paris branch changed its name to The Academie of Culinaire de France. Favre created the academy because he believed that the catering industry needed an association, and he was surprised that one did not already exist. He was equally surprised that there was not a dictionary of culinary terms, so he created a culinary dictionary, published in 1894 as the Dictionnaire Universel de Cuisine Pratique.
He also created The Culinary Science, which was the first newspaper focusing solely on the culinary industry.
The academie runs competitions including the Passion trophy, National trophy and International trophy.
Visit http://www.academieculinairedefrance.com/en/ for more information
The Association of Pastry Chefs was formed in 1993 by a small group of pastry chefs in London, and has grown to be a country wide association.
It started as a way to interact with each other socially, away from the industry, and this grew into giving each other new ideas, exchanging recipes and providing advice.
The association’s biggest aims are encouraging the development and learning of members.
The membership options are ordinary members (£40) and junior members (£20). The benefits are that members can wear the associations badge, get preferential booking at demonstrations and events, and gain free entry into the Dessert of the Year competition.
Get more information at http://www.ukapc.co.uk/
Academy of Food and Wine Service
The Academy of Food and Wine Service was established in 1988 and aims to improve the status of food and beverage service as a viable career choice.
They offer advice and training to anyone who has a career in or is pursuing a career as a sommelier, wine waiter, waiter, bar manager or restaurant manager.
They offer training packages and accredited training courses for members.
The academy also runs events and competitions including UK Restaurant Manager of the Year, UK Sommelier of the Year, AFWS Annual Awards and Rising Stars in Hospitality Food & Beverage Challenge.
They are the UK representative for the Association de la Sommerllerie Internationale, the worldwide accrediting body for sommeliers.
The benefits of getting a membership include access to training, networking events, recruitment support, and access to specialist master classes.
A full membership costs £85, and there is a UK Guild of Restaurant Service membership for £25.
To become a member or get more information go to http://www.afws.co.uk/
*Read our article on Friday when we find out if chefs think culinary associations are still worthwhile.
By Samantha Wright
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