Our Story

The Proud to be a Chef program recognises, develops and supports apprentice and trainee chefs to become the culinary leaders of tomorrow.

By investing in the foodservice industry at a grassroots level, we’re doing our part to help support the next generation of chefs to build on their passion and strive for greatness in kitchens across Australia and New Zealand.

We’re excited to announce that for the first time in the history of Proud to be a Chef, we will be inviting apprentice chefs from New Zealand to apply for the 2026 program.

In February 2026, 32 trans-Tasman finalists will fly to Melbourne to embark on a 4-day fast-paced, all expenses paid, mentorship program.

The culinary adventure will include mentoring and master classes with industry leading chefs, culinary field trips and extraordinary dining experiences at some of Australia’s most famous foodie locations.

Since 1996, we’re proud to have supported nearly 650 apprentice chefs through the Proud to be a Chef program. At the end of the 4-days, our judges award one apprentice an international culinary scholarship to reward their commitment and passion for food.

Past winners include:

2025 Daniel Yin
2024 Georgia Manganas
2023 Archer Houghton
2020 Amber Heaton
2019 Joel Nobel
2018 Rebekah White
2017 Giles Gabutina
2016 Jake McKenzie

2015 Mitchell Tucker
2014 Ashlee Carter
2013 Jacob Hoskin
2012 Sonja Dawson
2011 Keryn van Kempen
2010 Kate Ager
2009 Robin Turner

2004 Matthew Morris
2003 Jonathon Kemble
2002 Matthew Macartney
2001 Candice Webber
2000 Megan Knapp
1999 George Calombaris
1998 Karena Dunn

32
Finalists
Selected from Australia and New Zealand

4
Day Program
All expenses paid

3
Mentor chefs
Learn from industry greats

1
Scholarship
Awarded to overall winner

The Program

Our aim for Proud to be a Chef has been to encourage, inspire, reward and recognise future culinary leaders in the foodservice industry.

Experiences

Enjoy once-in-a-lifetime culinary experiences for apprentice and trainee chefs.

Relationships

Get opportunities to develop relationships with outstanding chefs and educators.

Education

Learn how to concept and create dishes using world-class dairy products.

Mark Normoyle

For six years, Chef Mark has been the Chef resident mentor for the Proud to be a Chef program. Day-to-day, he’s the Anchor™ Food Professionals Executive Chef Consultant for Australia, Asia and beyond. Some of his past key roles include, Wagyu Beef ambassador for the Gifu prefecture of Japan, Yuzu ambassador for Kochi Japan, Executive chef for Tune Hotel Group Malaysia and Executive Chef for the Royal Melbourne show back in 2019. His career highlights to date include hosting food and culture tours in Japan, India, Vietnam, Cambodia and Sri Lanka and working alongside the original Iron Chefs of Japan.

Revealed Soon

The apprentice chefs ready to step up to the plate will get to experience:

Master classes

We believe the best way to learn is through a mixture of hands on and demonstrative classes. This ensures our finalists leave the program with more skills and culinary knowledge than when they arrived.

Culinary experiences

Finalists get access to a range of dining styles and cuisines. It gives them a chance to fully experience restaurants that are often unattainable on an apprentice chef’s wage.

Field trips

Find out the best way to create award-winning dishes through site visits to places like the Queen Victoria Markets.

Who can apply?

If you’re an apprentice or trainee chef that’s passionate about food, committed to the foodservice industry and love to learn and try new experiences then we’d love to hear from you for the 2026 program.

To be eligible to apply, you must be:

18 years old or older as of 1 February 2026.
An apprentice or trainee chef, enrolled in a certified cookery program in Australia or New Zealand.
A current resident of Australia or New Zealand.

Please note: Successful applicants may be subject to reference checks as part of the entry criteria.

How to apply

To complete your application, create an original recipe and tell us why you are passionate about food and cookery, where you would like your apprenticeship to take you and what you’re hoping to get out of the mentoring program.

Enter your details, including where and who you study or work under.
Tell us about yourself and your career aspirations through either a 30 second video or 50 word summary.
Tell us about your dish concept, including which of the products you’ve used from the Anchor Food Professionals family*. Please note, this is the dish you’ll work with mentors to create during the program.

Applications close 31 October 2025.

*Anchor Food Professionals products include: Anchor, Western Star, Mainland, & Perfect Italiano.

A winning experience

As well as a once-in-a-lifetime mentorship experience, at the end of the program we award the efforts of a few lucky finalists.

Overall winner: Win a culinary scholarship

Over the course of the program, our judges and master chefs look out for the one apprentice who has shown the most growth and passion. The overall winner will then be awarded an international scholarship worth over $10,000 to the culinary institute of their choice.

Win achievement awards

Three finalists will be awarded for their outstanding achievements: Best Sweet Dish, Best Savoury Dish and Best Social Media.

26 years of Proud to be a Chef

For more than a quarter of a century, we’ve been inspiring, encouraging and empowering the future culinary stars of foodservice.

This experience has inspired me even more than I was before. It has got me thinking about different career opportunities and has given me more confidence.