From October 20 to 23, Nantes will host the 17th edition of the Serbotel fair, an important biennial event for professionals in the catering, hospitality, and food sectors, not only for its exhibition offer and a varied program of demonstrations and conferences, but also for its very large number of competitions that favor exchanges and creativity.

Focusing on the competitions, we highlight Le Trophée Agitateurs de Papilles, a new competition created by Vincent Guerlais for professional pastry chefs. In order to discover new talents in the world of chocolate at the regional and national levels, it will be divided into three tests: an artistic piece, a chocolate presentation, and chocolate bars around the theme “Art and Matter”. The participants will be evaluated by Guerlais himself, Quentin Bailly, Etienne Leroy, Yvan Chevalier, and other renowned chefs.

In terms of bakery, we find historical events such as the seventh Mondial du Pain and the 20th Coupe d’Europe de la Boulangerie. The Mondial, to be held between October 20 and 22, will be faced by Belgium, Brazil, China, Cote d’Ivoire, United States, France, Ghana, Italy, Japan, Mali, the Netherlands, Peru, the Philippines, Switzerland, Taiwan and Ukraine. Each team will have to show an international jury its ability to adapt to current consumption requirements in four categories: bread, viennoiserie, sandwich / tartine, and an artistic piece. This edition incorporates novelties such as the inclusion of “tartines” within the category of sandwich, the timing of the assembly of the artistic piece, and the integration of the breadmaking method Respectus Panis. Meanwhile, the Coupe d’Europe, organized by the Fédération des Boulangers de Loire-Atlantique, will take place on October 20 and will propose as a theme “Your country’s bakery through the centuries.” Applicants from Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Ukraine, and Switzerland must produce a 60×60 art piece with a maximum height of between 80 and 100 cm, a basket of six varieties of bread, and a tray with six types of viennoiseries.

Le Championnat de France de Sculpture sur Glace Hydrique, the regional selection of the World Chocolate Masters Cacao Barry and MAF Boulangerie are other competitions that will take place in the fair.