Warwick Chef completes gruelling South Africa food mission
October 2011
Warwick Conferences' award winning development chef has just returned from a life-changing mission to South Africa where he took part in the Bidvest World Chefs Tour Against Hunger 2011 to support underprivileged children.
Graham Crump, development chef at Warwick Conferences and member of the British Culinary Federation, was one of 250 chefs from 44 countries around the globe who took part. The tour raised around £800,000 to provide food for underprivileged children in South Africa and promote global awareness of the need to help alleviate poverty and hunger.
Running over ten days, from August 21-30, the tour was organised by the South African Chefs Association with support from the World Association of Chefs Societies.
Graham was joined by five other representatives from the British Culinary Federation to make up 'Team England'. These were, Jim Eaves, Paul Easterbrook, Rod Naylor, Brian Cotterill and Colin Capon.
Both beginning, and ending in Johannesburg, the team's demanding schedule involved participation in food festivals and demonstrations, feeding schemes in schools and orphanages, before spending a week in Durban showcasing their talents. The trip finally culminated in a Gala dinner attended by all 250 chefs.
Graham said: "I am honoured to have been part of such a momentous experience and I'm thrilled with how much money we collectively raised. It was a really exhausting ten days, both physically and emotionally, but I would do it all over again! The University of Warwick as a whole has a particular focus on working with Africa and Warwick already works closely with African schools to support mathematics education through the "Warwick in Africa" programme. We were delighted to be able to make our own contribution to supporting African children".
Rachael Bartlett, head of sales and marketing at Warwick Conferences commented: "We are extremely proud of Graham and what he achieved along with the rest of the participants and 'Team England'. Graham is a truly dedicated and committed chef and this trip is testament to that. He is a real asset to the team and is just one of many talented people that make up the specialist staff at Warwick Conferences."
