Foodco Group holds 10th Barista Championships
The company's 10th Annual Barista Competition finals were held in Sydney with the cream of baristas from across the nation invited to participate. Two finalists from each state were selected from 340 baristas across Muffin Break bakery cafés and 83 from Jamaica Blue cafés.
Muffin Break Penrith and Jamaica Blue Warringah Mall were crowned overall champions of the Barista Championships. Receiving top marks in customer service and technical skills, Muffin Break duo Emily Platts, Helia Valenzeula and Jamaica Blue colleagues Alex Tanupatarachai and Hwasuk Choi scored high on flavour, volume and appearance of coffees served to the event judges. Points were also awarded based on technical knowledge and skill in operating the espresso machine and grinder, as well as the presentation of cups, glasses and accessories.
Simon Au-Yeung, Coffee Training Facilitator said “We’ve witnessed the highest standard of coffee making to date at this years championships which is testament to the continued training and operational standards set at Foodco Group.”
The competition was hosted at Foodco’s Centre of Retail Excellence (C.O.R.E), an innovative state of the art training facility open for all franchisees. C.O.R.E consists of a retail outlet (open to the public) as well as a coffee training room, training kitchen and a classroom environment. Franchisees attend for three weeks as part of their initial induction to learn first hand practical skills of coffee making, food preparation and Foodco business systems to support in creating a profitable store. The C.O.R.E program is a recognised accredited Certificate 3 in Hospitality so franchisees are able to gain a qualification on completion.
Natalie Brennan said, “Coffee plays a major part of the Muffin Break and Jamaica Blue business. This is due to our increasing focus on quality and presentation (coffee awards, barista training programs and operational compliance and standards). Coffee represents around half of all Muffin Break sales nationally. This is a major portion of our business and year on year is a key focus for operation standards, sales and business growth opportunities.”
Entrants were required to participate in two rounds prior to the finals as part of the selection process. Round one required baristas to pour three latte art designs in three minutes. Top three entrants from each region were automatically entered into the Semi Final. They were then judged by the state managers competing for a finalist position.
Jeremy Regan, Head of Muffin Break and Jamaica Blue Coffee said, “We’ve updated the format of our competition in order to challenge our baristas on their creativity, latte art, sensory, taste, team work and communication skills.“
