Press Release

Randy Torres Named to AAC Culinary Regional Team USA

St. Augustine, Fla., May 12, 2008 - Randy Torres, director of culinary education at the Professional Culinary Institute, Campbell, Calif., has been named to American Academy of Chefs (AAC) Culinary Regional Team USA, one of the four teams that make up the American Culinary Federation (ACF) Culinary Team USA, the official representative culinary team for the United States in major national and international culinary competitions.

Torres will support AAC Culinary Regional Team USA as it competes on the world culinary stage against more than 40 international teams at the Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung (IKA) International Culinary Art Competition, more commonly known as the "culinary Olympics," in Erfurt, Germany, in October.

A member of Santa Clara Valley Chapter, Torres brings more than 15 years of culinary experience to the team. He received his formal training from Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, Calif., where he earned an advanced culinary certificate in 1999. Torres has worked in private clubs and hotels around the country, such as Victoria Country Club and Nordstrom Café in Riverside, Calif. He has also won more than 10 culinary medals in various competitions, including a silver medal at the Orange County Culinary Salon in 2003, a silver medal at the ACF Western Regional Conference in 1998, and a gold medal at the Las Vegas Culinary Challenge in 1996. He competed nationally and internationally as a member of the California Culinary Team from 1996 to 2004.

Torres began working as a culinary educator in 1999 at Orange Coast College, while remaining executive chef at Bear Creek Golf Club in Murrieta, Calif., created by the world-famous golfer Jack Nicklaus, and the premier private, equity-membership club in Temecula/Murrieta Valley. As an educator, Torres is passionate about inspiring young professionals through culinary competitions. He has coached numerous student teams and has an impressive record of six state championships, three ACF Western Regional Conference championships and two ACF national championships. Torres continues to inspire young culinarians as team manager at the Professional Culinary Institute.

"We are so pleased to have Chef Torres join our team. Randy is a seasoned and proven competitor with many awards and achievements," said AAC Culinary Regional Team USA manager Jill Bosich, CEC, CCE, AAC. "Not only is he an experienced competitor, but he's just a great person. To have his talent, great attitude and excitement as a part of our group will only help us as a team achieve our goal of a gold medal at the upcoming 'culinary Olympics'."

ACF Culinary Team USA comprises of four teams: one national, ACF Culinary National Team USA; two regional teams, ACF Culinary Regional Team USA and AAC Culinary Regional Team USA; and one youth team, ACF Culinary Youth Team USA. Team USA exemplifies, professionalism and creativity in major international culinary competitions such as: the American Culinary Classic, the Culinary World Cup and the IKA.

Members of AAC Culinary Regional Team USA are: Jill Bosich, CEC, CCE, AAC, team manager and executive chef/energy-programs advisor, Southern California Gas Company, Downey, Calif.; Christopher Desens, CEC, executive chef, The Racquet Club Ladue, St. Louis; Scott Fetty, chef-instructor, Pennsylvania Culinary Institute, Pittsburgh; Daryl L. Shular, corporate executive chef, PFG-Milton's, Oakwood, Ga.; and Randy Torres, director of culinary education, Professional Culinary Institute, Campbell, Calif.

The team's history at the IKA is long and distinguished. When Americans began competing as an official team in 1956, they were clearly the underdogs. However, American cookery soon established itself as world-class cuisine. The 1960 team captured the first world championship honor for the United States, and ACF Culinary Team USA repeated the distinction in 1980, 1984 and 1988 by taking the prestigious hot-food competition all three times and establishing a new world record for the most consecutive gold-medal wins. The team's most recent IKA win came in 2004, when the team took home the gold medal in hot-food cooking, reestablishing ACF Culinary National Team USA as the leader in international cooking.

Sponsors of ACF Culinary Team USA are Kraft Foodservice, Tyson Food Service, Uncle Ben's, Unilever, Club Managers Association of America, KitchenAid, Chef Revival, Fortessa, Friedr. Dick, Westchester Country Club and Blodgett.

About the American Culinary Federation
The American Culinary Federation, Inc., established in 1929, is the premier professional organization for culinarians in North America. With 20,000 members spanning more than 230 chapters nationwide, ACF is the culinary leader in offering educational resources, training, apprenticeship and accreditation. In addition, ACF operates the most comprehensive certification program for chefs in the United States. ACF is home to ACF Culinary Team USA, the official representative for the United States in major international culinary competitions, and also holds the presidium for the World Association of Chefs Societies, the largest international network of chef associations with more than eight million members globally. For more information, please visit www.acfchefs.org.

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High resolution photo available by calling Patricia Carroll at (800) 624-9458, ext. 147.

Contact: Patricia Carroll
Communications Director
(800) 624-9458, ext. 147
pcarroll@acfchefs.net

• Randy Torres Named to AAC Culinary Regional Team USA