Revealing the results at this year’s Seafood Expo Global in Brussels, Wild Atlantic Prawns’ announced that the success of their Chef Education Programme has led to further investment from processors of Pandalus borealis in Iceland and Norway.
They will join with current funders Royal Greenland and the Association of Seafood Producers in Canada.
The programme is designed to increase the knowledge of Wild Atlantic Prawns with UK-based chefs, chef lecturers, student chefs and hospitality management students, ensuring they know how to get the best from resources and inspiring them to use the species in more inventive and modern ways.
The project includes:
- A suite of inspiring Wild Atlantic Prawns masterclasses delivered in the UK’s most prestigious hospitality colleges. These focus on the sustainability and provenance of Pandalus borealis, best methods of preparation and pairing the Wild Atlantic Prawns with some innovative and modern partners.
- Involvement in prestigious events and UK competitions for chefs and trainee chefs, such as the Young Seafood Chef of the Year and Restaurant Team of the Year at the Skills for Chefs conference.
- Blogger and social media outreach.
The initiative began in 2015 as collaboration between Royal Greenland and the Association of Seafood Producers. With the addition of seafood producers from Iceland and Norway, the programme now represents most of the Wild Atlantic Prawn processing regions in the North Atlantic.
Announcing the results today, project director Karen Galloway said: “After less than a year since the project launch, awareness of the programme among our target audience of trainee chefs and lecturers has gone from 18 per cent to 43 per cent. In addition, 92 per cent of these chef lecturers are able to tell us about the provenance and wild nature of these prawns compared with just over half at the outset of the project – something the project was established to address. We believe these amazing results highlight the importance of the food industry in supporting trainee chefs to make the most of any food produce, particularly our Wild Atlantic Prawns. We are incredibly grateful to all the partners for their support and look forward to delivering an even greater programme of engagement in the year ahead. ”
Explaining their involvement, Derek Butler, executive director and board chair of the Association of Seafood Producers said: “Given the many varieties of prawns, not to mention seafood generally, it is imperative that future chefs are educated about wild Atlantic prawns and equipped with the foundations of a true understanding of this great product before they enter professional kitchens. The results announced today support our rationale in creating the Wild Atlantic Prawns Chef Education Programme, and we look forward to building on this success with our North Atlantic partners in the year ahead.”
Lise-Lotte Callesøe York, Category Director at Royal Greenland A/S added: “We are very proud to be a driving force behind such a successful initiative. It is essential that new chefs understand how best to use wild Atlantic prawns in the correct way in order to get the most from this delicacy from the cold waters of the Atlantic.”
“We are absolutely delighted that the seafood processors in Norway and Iceland also recognise the importance of this programme. With their support, and the continued investment from the Association of Seafood Producers in the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador, we will be able to deliver an even more engaging and impactful Wild Atlantic Prawns initiative in the year ahead.”
Tom-Harry Klausen, Managing Director at Norway Prawns said: “The Norwegian industry has been following the developments of the Wild Atlantic Prawns Chef Education Programme over the last year and are delighted to be able to confirm our participation in the programme. There are so many surprising and delicious ways in which wild Atlantic prawns can be used – we are keen that student chefs think beyond mayonnaise as an accompaniment. Chefs play an essential role in showcasing our prawns, so it is important that we support them in doing this in the most inventive, mouth watering and modern ways.”
Yngvi Óttarsson, Sales Director for Icelandic Export Centre Ltd added: “We have a great story to tell about our products and student chefs are an important group to take that message to. We believe the foodservice sector can have a great influence in showcasing our Wild Atlantic Prawns in the most appetising ways. We look forward to supporting them to do this through this innovative Wild Atlantic Prawns Chef Education Programme.”
