UA's Paulina Rodriguez stands by her completed sculpture.
Culinary students from The University of Akron competed in the Collegiate National Fruit and Vegetable Carving Competition Oct. 1 and 2 at the Holland Farmers Market in Holland, Mich.
UA students placed first in the two-hour compulsory event that called for them to engrave watermelons with images of roses.
Team UA literally carved out a first-place ranking with 32.5 points, ahead of Oakland Community College (Michigan) with 31 points and Columbus State Community College with 29 points.
In all, 26 students participated in three events. In the singles competition, students had three hours to complete their sculptures using a mystery basket of fruits and vegetables, toothpicks and skewers. In the team event, students from three competing teams were supplied with watermelons, cantaloupes, honeydew melons and pumpkins and worked together to carve one large display in four-and-a-half hours.
Richard Davis, Yookyoung Kim and Rachael Eldelman are part of UA's carving team.
With leadership from Chef Richard Alford, UA associate professor emeritus of hospitality management, the event included culinary students from across the nation for the first time in history.
Alford founded the NICA Collegiate National Ice Carving Championship at UA in 1994 and established the Collegiate National Fruit and Vegetable Carving Competition this year.
“Creating these competitions has been a dream of mine for a long time,” Alford says. “Our involvement brings recognition to The University of Akron and provides another venue to educate culinary arts students while putting their skills under the spotlight.”
For details about the University’s Garde Manger Club — for students interested in fruit, vegetable and ice carving — call 330-972-6615. For more information about the Collegiate National Fruit and Vegetable Competition, visit the Holland Farmers Market.
Media contacts: Paige Poleondakis, 330-972-6482 or pep7@zips.uakron.edu, or Denise Henry, 330-972-6477 or henryd@uakron.edu.