2023 September Board Book

Our press release provided some detail on this year’s contest: “This year’s pizza contest showcased the use of California dairy at its finest,” said Mike Gallagher, Business and Market Development Consultant for the CMAB. “The judges were impressed by the variety of California cheeses and how chefs used them to elevate their recipes, such as a pesto-whipped Ricotta featured in one of the winning pizzas . There was a clear recognition by our finalists of the quality these products bring to the table.” The 5 th Real California Pizza Contest, held at The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) at Copia in Napa, Calif., was open to professional chefs and culinary students across the United States. A record number of participants entered the 2023 contest, which led to the most competitive finalist selection in event history. The competition was judged by a renowned panel of judges including 13-time World Pizza Champion and owner of 22 culinary concepts, Tony Gemignani; certified pizzaiolo and award-winning executive chef Glenn Cybulski; and professional chef and 2022 Real California Pizza Contest Grand Prize Winner David Jacobson. Judges based scores on a range of factors including taste, texture and the inventive use of cheeses made with Real California Milk. “As the country’s number one producer of milk and Mozzarella, a big percentage of our dairy products go into pizza,” said John Talbot, CEO of the CMAB. “A healthy pizza industry is important to our California dairy industry. Maintaining our standing as a national leader in the pizza category is essential to our business.” Sysco The Real California Milk Seal was approved on 24 Sysco Hispanic Private Label items. Foodservice Website We have decided to create a stand-alone CMAB foodservice website. Three companies are bidding on the opportunity to create it: Deutsch LA, Ketchum, and The Food Connector. PFG California Event

The Performance Foodservice Group, with some of their most talented chefs, joined CMAB at the Culinary Institute in Napa in a partnership that highlighted some of California’s best cheeses. Their corporate executive chef said, “we couldn’t be happier with the event and with our