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New Long-Term Opportunities

in Culinary Education:

The Personal Chef Option

More and more culinary professionals, including recent graduates of postsecondary foodservice-training programs, are choosing to become personal chefs instead of continuing or launching careers in institutional or restaurant cooking. The primary reason: they look to the personal-chef segment of the industry as the way to own a business that provides creative outlets plus a comfortable income without demanding grueling hours and years of "paying dues" to the culinary field.

The American Personal Chef Institute (APCI), headquartered in San Diego, functions as the education branch of the American Personal Chef Association (APCA) and offers members opportunities to start or improve personal-chef businesses based on highly effective, proven techniques.

At the ACF Trade Show (booth 1130), Candy Wallace, executive director of APCI and APCA, shared the history and background of the personal-chef profession and its projected growth over the next five years.

"We realize that new businesses are started every day by people who are willing to track down all necessary details and learn by trial and error," Wallace said. "The facts are, however, that many such operations fail quckly or struggle for long periods while the kinks are being worked out. Those stumbling blocks can now be avoided."

Wallace, who founded APCA and APCI 12 years ago, believes that external validation of person chefs was required before they could achieve stature among their culinary peers. That recognition has occurred. At the ACF 2002 national convention in Las Vegas July 2002, a certification agreement between APCA and ACF led to announcement of ACF's two new certification designations for personal chefs: Personal Certified Executive Chef (PCEC) and Personal Certified Chef (PCC). Both are built upon APCA training programs developed and taught since 1995.

"With this validation in place," Wallace said, "we are seeing greater demand for personal-chef training from within the ranks of existing and aspiring chefs who have attended culinary schools." Best of all, she added, ACF validation opens new teaching opportunities that culinary educators can utilize as early as the fall semester.

CULINARY SCHOOLS TO TRAIN PERSONAL CHEFS

You can offer personal-chef training at your school as an APCA Venue Host by providing a two-day, high-intensity seminar, or by incorporating training as a credit-hour program that is part of your existing curriculum. Whichever option you prefer, the APCA program meets the educational skills and competencies required for ACF personal-chef certification.

For more information contact Candy Wallace at 800-644-8389 or email at contact@personalchef.com.

© 2005 American Personal Chef Institute/American Personal Chef Association. All Rights Reserved.

ACF

Personal Chef Certification announcement at 2002 National Convention

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