As Global Creative Lead Chef for Callebaut, Minette is leading the creative side of the Callebaut brand, crafting new innovations, inspirations, and actionable solutions for chefs and entrepreneurs around the globe.

Minette’s career with Barry Callebaut began in her home country of South Africa, where she led the opening of the first Chocolate Academy™ Center in Africa in 2017. She was Head Chef at the Academy from 2017 to 2022, supporting all regional technical efforts while leading and driving global sustainability initiatives. 

Minette’s passion in life is culinary arts, but she has always had a particular affinity for chocolate, pastry, and confectionery arts.
She represented South Africa in the Sigep competition in Italy in 2011 and the Global Pastry Chefs Challenge in Namibia in 2013. She won the Bronze Medal in both events at the IKA Culinary Olympics in Erfurt in 2016. 

Gabriella Cugno has been a Pastry chef and Chocolatier for 15 years working at high end restaurants, patisseries, chocolateries, and world renowned five-star-hotels. 
Gabriella has won various prestigious awards including UK & Ireland ‘Junior Chocolate Master' and The Royal Academy of Culinary Arts ‘Young Pastry Chef of The Year’, which she now judges. 
Her work has taken her across the globe, from Europe, to the Far East, and the Caribbean where she teaches masterclasses, consults, caters for events, and has worked directly with cocoa farmers and cocoa producers to develop new chocolate recipes.

Most recently, Gabriella’s work has taken her to the Warner Bros Studios UK to be the Official Chocolatier for WONKA, where she designed and made all of the chocolates for the movie. 

Gabriella combines her artistic background with her work, to create intricate chocolates, sculptures, and incredible paintings made entirely out of chocolate. 
 

Will Torrent is a Senior Development & Innovation Chef at Waitrose, having begun his career with Heston Blumenthal at the world-renowned The Fat Duck before working with some of the finest chefs around the UK and winning a host of industry awards as a young chef. He has made many TV appearances, including Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch and BBC's The Apprentice. He is the author of three popular baking books, including the best-selling "Afternoon Tea at Home". His no-nonsense approach to the techniques in patisserie and chocolate making has earned high praise in reviews for all his books. Will is also a member of the Royal Academy of Culinary Arts and the Craft Guild of Chefs as well as a judge for the Great Taste Awards, RACA Annual Awards of Excellence, World Marmalade Awards and International Salon Culinaire and host of Craft Guild of Chefs National Chef of the Year.