Georgia public high school students are invited to apply to compete in the Second Annual Farm-to-School Student Chef Competition, part of the Georgia Department of Education School Nutrition Program’s Shake it Up initiative. The competition will be held Wednesday, March 14, 2018 at Williams S. Hutchings College & Career Academy in Macon.

The top three winning teams will be awarded scholarships and the top team will move on to compete in the Southeast Regional Junior Chef Competition from May 9 to 10, 2018 at Sullivan University in Louisville, Kentucky.

“GaDOE’s Shake it Up in School Nutrition initiative is all about changing the culture of school nutrition,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said. “Our school nutrition staff and their colleagues across the state are shaking up school meals by providing updated, kid-tested and -approved recipes and other training and resources. The Student Chef Competition gets students directly involved in that process and gives them a great opportunity to put in practice what they’re learning in school.”

Teams will compete to develop a nutritious, student-friendly recipe that includes local foods, USDA Foods and is easily incorporated into the school food service program. The competition consists of a recipe contest and a cooking competition, and students will be judged on taste, student appeal, presentation, and creativity. Click here for full requirements.

“The competition provides an opportunity for students to partner with school nutrition and develop recipes that will be used in school nutrition programs across the state,” GaDOE Farm to School Specialist Laura Tanase said.

Student teams should apply to compete via the application by January 10, 2018. Teams selected to compete in the recipe contest and cooking competition will be notified by mid-February.

Contact Laura Tanase or Paige Holland at StudentChef@gadoe.org with questions about the competition.