The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services is accepting entries for Florida Future Chef 2026. According to the department, the Florida Future Chef is, a statewide student cooking competition that challenges young Floridians to creatively reimagine school meals using Florida-grown ingredients, while learning about the nutrition standards that guide the National School Lunch Program.”
Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson said, “Parents are paying closer attention to what’s in their children’s food, and they should. The Florida Future Chef competition encourages students to think differently about nutrition by using fresh Florida-grown ingredients instead of relying on heavily processed foods. That’s good for our kids, good for our farmers, and good for Florida.”
According to the Department, “From hundreds of submissions statewide, FDACS’ Division of Food, Nutrition, and Wellness will select three finalists to advance to a three-day finale held in Tampa. During the event, these talented student chefs will strengthen their kitchen skills, learn how nutrition standards shape school meals, and put their creativity to the test by presenting a final dish to a panel of judges.”
The contest is open until July 13th with students competing for prizes and up to $5,000 in college funds, sponsored by Sprouts Health Communities Foundation. Official rules can be found at floridafuturechef.com.
Audio Reporting by Dale Sandlin for Southeast AgNet.