Seven top chefs from Malaysia, who prepare more than 10,000 premium meals a day, are set to visit the Gippsland region of Victoria looking for new supplies of top-quality ingredients, with a meet-and-greet lunch organised by Agribusiness Gippsland.
The tour will include the executive chefs of the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, the Sheraton Imperial, Hilton’s Double Tree and the Best Western Kuala Lumpur as well as several restaurant chains.
Gippsland food producers keen to showcase their specialities will have a chance to meet the chefs face-to-face at a top-level lunch at Wild Dog Winery in Warragul on Saturday 8 March 2014.
The eight-course degustation lunch will feature prime Gippsland offerings in beef, seafood, game, fruits and cheese, matched with premium wines.
“This is a tax-deductible export sales opportunity, and includes a free trade stand space,” said Paul Ford, Chairman of Agribusiness Gippsland, which is organising the lunch with support from ANZ Bank.
“Small producers are particularly favoured by this type of event,” Mr Ford said. “You don’t have to yell to be heard. And you don’t have to have a massive output to impress. In fact, these chefs are here to discover exquisite and rare offerings,” he said.
Agribusiness Gippsland was selected to participate in 2013 in the Victorian State Government ministerial trade missions to the ASEAN nations and to China.
“The rising Asian middle class is a marketplace of growing sophistication,” Mr Ford said. “They appreciate quality and will pay handsomely for it,” he said.
Mr Ford said a visit to the city Super Food Hall in Shanghai showed that Australian beef retailed at A$100 per kilogram, 250g of Bega Cheese at A$40 per kilogram, and Murray Goulburn UHT milk at $7 per litre.
The meal at Warragul will cost attendees $100 and includes wine and GST. There will be floor space allocated for trade stands.
“If you are a small food producer, this is an opportunity out of the box,” Mr Ford said. “You get a captive, select audience and an unparalleled networking opportunity not only among the visiting chefs but also among the gourmet diners attending the lunch. And it’s all drawn together with an exceptional meal with stunning Gippsland wines,” he said.
Other sponsors of the event include Radfords Meats and Maffra Cheese Company.
