CLEVELAND HEIGHTS, OH — International competitions offer retail bakers a chance to shine and share their pocket of the world with the global baking community. This is especially true for Mondial du Pain, set to be held in Nantes, France, from Oct. 19–22.
The 10th annual competition will showcase professional bakers’ skills in artisan bread and pastry-making through a series of product entries, emphasizing technical precision, innovation, artistic expression and nutritional aspects.
To represent the US, the Bread Bakers Guild of America (BBGA) is sending On the Rise Artisan Breads, a bakery located in Cleveland Heights, OH, that specializes in authentic, European-style breads and traditional pastries.
“Baking competitions encourage interest and innovation in our craft while promoting education and community among bakers around the world,” said Karen Bornarth, executive director of BBGA. “The mission of Team USA is to demonstrate to the world that American professionals have evolved to a high degree of baking ability and have established traditions inspired by the richness and diversity of global baking traditions.”
BBGA has a long history of competition, beginning in 1994 with the first Team USA that competed in the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie. Since that time, the Guild has sent many teams to compete in these international events, all with the goal of bringing home the gold.
Meet the team
Team USA consists of candidate Brian Evans, owner of On the Rise Artisan Breads; assistant baker and On the Rise team member Val Kertesz; and coach Louis Volle, a former Mondial du Pain medalist.
“Brian is known for his creativity, technical skill and commitment to local grains,” Karen said. “What’s exciting about the current Team USA is the combination of talent and experience they bring to the Mondial du Pain.”
Brian has been with On the Rise since 2010, spurred there by his interest in bread and the intricacies behind the baking process. At the beginning of this year, Brian, in partnership with his wife, purchased the bakery and has since expanded the menu, helping to grow the business’s reach.
With the anticipation of Mondial du Pain looming, Brian is most excited to share his products made with local grains and ingredients. According to him, the time spent behind the bench has prepared him for this prestigious competition.
“One of the most important things when going into a competition like this is truly mastering fermentation,” Brian said. “Whether it’s a sourdough loaf, a croissant or a baguette, there are so many nuances from day to day with the different temperatures, humidities and flour that you have to build up a rolodex of problem-solving skills. You have to know how the dough is supposed to feel at each step of the process.”
Buy local, eat local
When tasked with creating a nutritional bread for the competition, Brian was intentional when choosing his variety, placing special emphasis on the roots behind the bake.
“There’s a mill located in Columbus, OH, called Local Millers,” he explained, “and they source Ohio grains and do the milling on their own farm, and they showed me how important soil health is to the nutritional quality of the grains. Now, we’re able to take some of the grain that they grew and milled for us overseas for the competition.”
Brian, with the help of his team, also developed a brioche pastry that incorporated honey bought from a bakery member’s homestead.
“It’s a honey cake, and we’re utilizing bee pollen as part of the decoration,” he said. “There’s a honeycomb mold that we used, and we filled each cavity with honey.”
An innate competitive streak fueled Brian’s attendance in the competition. His love of the craft, however, is what will ensure his overall success in Nantes, regardless of the results.
“I’m really excited to see what these other countries are doing and bring those ideas back to Cleveland and share some of those global recipes,” Brian said. “I’m looking forward to sharing this experience with the American baking community upon returning, and I hope to build awareness and excitement around competitions like this.”
From preparation to execution, Mondial du Pain serves as a platform for bakers to hone their skills, expand their networks and embrace opportunities … the foundation of any business primed to stand the test of time.
“Through the hard work of preparing for a competition, these bakers learn so much about recipe formulation, process adaptation and efficiency, and product quality and consistency,” Karen said. “These lessons are handed down to bakers in commercial settings through Guild education opportunities. The bar is raised with each competition, and those higher standards, innovation and creativity ultimately reach artisan bakeries and the customers they serve.”
