WATSONVILLE, CA - The return of California Giant Berry Farms’ annual Chef Invitational is always on our radar at the Sacramento, California, headquarters of AndNowUKnow. Now in its fifth year, I wanted to dig deeper into the heart of this event, and who better to turn to but the man of the hour himself, Tom Smith.

The Director of Sales and I chatted about everything from innovations to the importance of connecting chefs with growers. Let’s dive in.

“We set out to build a program that revolves around innovation, but the chefs opened our mind up to what innovation really is, regardless of what we thought it was,” Tom told me, detailing that the knowledge California Giant has gleaned from its foodservice partners is second to none in terms of application, innovation, and more.

The chefs that journey to the Chef Invitational are hungry to showcase their culinary skills, but there’s another element that Tom loves seeing: collaboration.

“These talented minds and industry experts are working together to come up with innovative new recipes that use berries in ways we haven’t seen before. They might be working alongside someone who is their direct competitor outside of the event, but at the Chef Invitational, we’re all working together toward a purpose: increasing consumption of fresh berries and increasing California Giant label recognition within the foodservice and retail channels,” Tom imparted.

The chefs themselves benefit not only from collaborating with peers and customers alike, but from a direct connection to the people and the land that their food comes from.

“One of the things I’ve learned from this is how important it is for chefs and the culinary world to connect with the grower and the land,” Tom shared. “Chefs love to be in the field. They love to taste a fresh berry right off of the plant and meet the growers who are putting in the work every day to bring that product to the table. Telling the full story on their plate is really important, and something they’ve appreciated every year.”

To see a product come full circle like that—it’s little wonder that the Chef Invitational is as sought after as it is.

Creating both a network of industry luminaries and a portfolio of incredible recipes, California Giant’s Chef Invitational has only strengthened over the years.

“Foodservice is a priority to our business, and it’s something that we’re committed to,” Tom added. “We want the foodservice industry to know that we’re just as committed to them, that we are there for them 52 weeks out of the year. A huge launch point of this competition was wanting to put ourselves out there and spread that message.”

As we wrapped our conversation, I asked Tom what he was looking forward to most out of this year’s event.

“We’ve raised the bar every year, and this year, we’ve got a culinary innovation expert who will lead a workshop on culinary methodology that combines macro societal trends and Culinary Compassion™ for meaningful menu development,” Tom noted. “This is a huge piece and a monument to what we’re doing, that we’re not only getting something amazing from the chefs but delivering something back to them.”

The educational session will be led by Chef Rosalyn Darling—more info on that coming soon!

We’ll continue to report on the behind-the-scenes action as we gear up for the event, so stay tuned!

California Giant Berry Farms