Anderson Partners Advertising | Food Ingredients

“Chefs are incredibly important future leaning reflectors of where food flavors, preparation and health are headed. Chefs are the food educators of our time.” That’s according to Food Culture 2012, a report from the Hartman Group. Chefs have always played an important role in new food product development and their role in the commercial ingredient channels of the food industry has continued to grow. We previously wrote about a trade show hit for Sunkist Growers who featured a celebrity chef’s new dishes at the PMA Show in California.

Chefs have also taken a leading role in using the Internet to communicate with their fans and followers as well as with their peers and colleagues. We see leading chefs everywhere on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and of course the ubiquitous Facebook. Recently we posted a tweet to our Twitter feed @markhughesfood that asked the question “Who is your favorite chef on Twitter?” The tweet drew far more comments, re-tweets and favorites than normal. In response, here are our favorite chefs on the Internet:

Mario Batali

Molto Mario uses a great recipe for his Internet activity and gets terrific online engagement from his fans and peers. His main website has rich and varied content on his various properties and projects including links to all his social media platforms. But it’s on Twitter where the chef really shines. His Twitter feed @mariobatali is a lively blend of recipe tips and answers to fans questions about various dishes. His Twitter feed also contains his recommendations for ingredients and favorite haunts. The sheer volume of Chef Batali’s tweets suggest he has help with this, but the comments never lose the personality and charm that people expect from Mario.

Robert Danhi

Chef Robert Danhi is off on an adventure to search out great flavors and tastes and uses the Internet to effectively report on his progress and share his discoveries with friends and followers. His main website offers rich content on his focus of Asian dishes and local flavors. A companion site offers products and more content on Southeast Asian flavors. The chef’s Twitter handle is, of course, @chefdanhitweets and he actively uses Twitter to send greetings to friends and colleagues from his travels around the globe. He is also very generous with his time and knowledge, often sharing content with food bloggers and reporters. Here’s a recent local article from Rasa Malaysia on “Cooking with Chef Robert Danhi.”

Jacques Pepin

Jacques Pepin is, simply put, my favorite chef anywhere. So of course, that includes the Internet.  Chef Pepin’s La Technique has held an honored spot in my kitchen for 25 years and I continue to use it today. It continues to be one of the all-time best selling cook books. Chef Pepin has a robust presence on the Internet mainly through his instructional videos. Here’s one for a very Pepin-like omelet. His videos cover a wide range of ingredients and finished dishes and are all presented in the chef’s calm and self-assured voice and style. According to a recent NY Times article, when it comes to food preparation, “There is the wrong way and there is Jacques Pepin’s way.”

We love all chefs on the Internet. These three are our favorites.  Who is your favorite Chef on the Internet?

The Baking Channel on bakemag.com recently launched a social media video that featured Kretchmar's Bakery from Beaver, PA. This video is a part of their tour, Discovering America's Bakeries.

Lincoln Kretchmar, of Kretchmar's Bakery, discussed why his company invested in social media and also shared some best practices he follows regarding social media marketing:

• Social media is great for marketing and branding and can help build up your image.
• It is a cost-effective way to communicate effectively with customers.
• Post frequently—Kretchmar's Bakery currently posts at least once a week.
• Social media can be ineffective if done wrong—only post things that are engaging to your audience. It is about what is pertinent to your customers, not necessarily what is pertinent to you.

By following these best practices, Kretchmar’s Bakery has been effective in building relationships with its customers and increasing the bakery’s brand exposure. We’d love to hear what social media marketing best practices you follow and the success you’ve had. Leave us a comment below!

bake magazine recently held a contest to find America’s best bakery. The contest included six bakery finalists who were chosen by the bake editorial team.

Each bakery owner created a short video where they talked about what they felt made their bakery the best in America. For example, Dan Busken, from Busken Bakery, felt the transparency in management was something of value to share with voters. Rather than discuss what products the bakery offers, Busken shared how he keeps his employees informed by holding an annual company meeting. In another video, Dennis Meyer, from Das Meyer Fine Pastry Chalet, used his video to show how his bakery creates their macaroon sushi pastry. Meyer’s video was very different from Busken’s because it had more of a “baking show” feel.

This contest was a great tool to support the “best” bakeries across the country and provide them the chance to showcase what truly makes them the best. Even though the main goal for bake magazine was to find America’s best bakery, they also acknowledged the readers who voted by enrolling them into a drawing for a free iPad 2. The polls closed March 31, and the winner of the America’s Best Bakery Contest will be announced in the magazine’s May issue.