IKA Competition

The road to the medals

As soon as the Olympic flame has been lit, the participants in the IKA/Culinary Olympics have only one objective: to gain as many points as possible. The jury will judge the teams and individual exhibitors in each competition discipline

On the four competition days from 15 to 18 February 2020, gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded in every competition based on the number of points. At the final award ceremony on Wednesday, February 19 2020, the total number of points will decide who will be the Olympic champion.

IKA Competition

CULINARY ART. WORLDWIDE. UNIQUE

Teams from all over the world, gathered together for a unique competition: that’s the IKA/Culinary Olympics. The International Exhibition of Culinary Art (in German: Internationale Kochkunst Ausstellung or IKA) termed the Culinary Olympics, is a quadrennial chef competition, and the biggest culinary exhibition in the world.

In no other cooking competition do so many professional chefs measure their skills against each other.

Compared to the biannual Bocuse d'Or of France, Internationale ,Kochkunst Ausstellung or IKA is a culinary art competition in Germany that takes place every 4 years, which is why it is also called the Culinary Olympiad.

The last edition IKA (25th edition) took place in Stuttgart for the first time between February 14-19, 2020

Conceived by a group of German chefs in 1896 with the aim of promoting German cuisine in the world, while receiving impulses from other cooking cultures, the first competition was organized in 1900 in Frankfurt, with four participating nations. Each event took place in Frankfurt until 1996, when it was moved to Berlin. Since 2000 it has been staged in Erfurt.

The 2012 event involved 54 nations with 1,600 participating chefs, with Sweden in first place, Norway in second place and Germany in third place. Sweden also won the Junior Team competition.