2024/2025 AMBASSADOR CHEFS
about beef + lamb nz
Beef + Lamb New Zealand is a not-for-profit organisation responsible for the domestic marketing of beef and lamb in New Zealand. We are funded by levies from farmers, meat processors and retailers.
The Beef and Lamb New Zealand foodservice portfolio has been around for a long time. Back in the 1980’s they ran the Lamb Cuisine Awards which helped put New Zealand lamb on restaurant menus around the country. In 1997 the Awards became the Hallmark of Excellence Awards which was developed by a group of chefs to include both beef and lamb dishes and to establish what was to go on to be New Zealand’s longest running culinary award. The Beef and Lamb Excellence Awards ran for 23 years and during that time awarded the prestigious gold plate to over 3000 restaurants around the country.
The Ambassador Chef Programme evolved from the Beef + Lamb Excellence Awards and for almost three decades has seen some of our best loved chefs join the beef and lamb family as Ambassador Chefs. Some of these chefs have gone on to become Platinum which is a lifetime status granted to chefs for their longevity as ambassadors for Beef + Lamb New Zealand. In 2021 Beef + Lamb launched their inaugural search for a Beef + Lamb Young Ambassador Chef which is a competition held bi-annually for chefs under the age of 26.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s vision is for kiwi chefs to value and celebrate the place of grass-fed New Zealand beef and lamb as part of our national cuisine and for the voices of our Ambassador Chefs to lead the way.
The role of the Ambassador Chefs is to help shine a light on the New Zealand food story with inspiration, innovation, and elevation of New Zealand beef and lamb at the heart. They will help to celebrate New Zealand producers and their produce by telling the paddock to plate story through their menus.
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