A four-day international-standard competition for talented bakers is taking place in Ho Chi Minh City, attracting more than 500 professional bakers from Vietnam and abroad.

The Vietnam Bakery Cup (VNBC) 2024 kicked off on Wednesday at the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center (SECC) in District 7, gathering competitors from Vietnam, China, Malaysia, South Korea, and several other countries.

The event is organized by the Vietnam Bakery Association (VNBA) and the Saigon Professional Chefs’ Guild (SPC), with support from the World Association of Chefs Societies (Worldchefs) and the International Union of Bakers and Confectioners.

The competition, which lasts until Saturday, is a prominent event in artistic baking, providing a platform for contestants to show off their talents and professional skills, according to the organizers. 

All participants are professional pastry chefs, cooks, and sculptors recognized as master chefs by Worldchefs, according to Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper.

Both Vietnamese and international judges with great experience at international bakery competitions will assess competitors’ performance at the event.

Tran Thi Hien Minh, vice-president of SPC, stated that this is the first baking competition in Vietnam to meet international standards, with the top prize winner advancing to compete on the global stage.

According to Nguyen Thi Khanh, head of the Ho Chi Minh City Tourism Association, the international-level pastry chef competition highlights and promotes the cultural and economic significance of Vietnam's pastry industry.

It also contributes to the growth of both the pastry sector and Vietnamese cuisine as a whole, Nhan Dan (People) newspaper reported.

Kao Sieu Luc, general director of Asia Bakery Confectionery Joint Stock Company (ABC), commented that the bakery industry in Vietnam has continued to maintain growth in 2024, despite many challenges facing the world’s economy.

He attributed the fruitful development partly to young entrepreneurs who have opened small-but-creative bakeries that give new vitality to the market and meet the increasingly high demands of consumers.  

Vietnam is now considered one of the most promising bakery markets in Southeast Asia, the Taipei Bakery Association said.

“With an annual growth rate of 10.17 percent, the Vietnamese confectionery market shows great potential for development, and the demand for baked goods with new, unique flavors or higher quality is steadily increasing,” according to the Hong Kong Business Association Vietnam.

The VNBC 2024 is organized as part of the Vietnam International Bakery Show (VIBS) 2024, which are taking place at SECC at the same time.

The bakery exhibition is held by VNBA and the Taipei Bakery Association, with the partnership of ABC and support from the Ho Chi Minh City Food and Foodstuff Association as well as the Vietnam Dairy Association.

The VIBS 2024, with nearly 200 booths from 120 domestic and international brands, aims to promote trade and establish a strong and reputable business platform for the bakery industry in Vietnam, according to the organizers.

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