“This time, we are aiming for the podium”: the Tarn-et-Garonne team will compete in the French bakery cup

It's not just the French Football cup. The bakery also has its Coupe de France. And when you are French, it is not sure that this trophy, awarded every two years in Lyon on the occasion of the International Exhibition of Catering, Hotels and Food (SIRHA) will not not as much dream as that of the “Old Lady” won in 2023 by the Toulouse Football-Club.

“For us too, the training is intense,” recognizes Alexandre Haffner. This artisan baker based in Aucamville (Tarn-et-Garonne) certainly deserves the nickname of competition beast. In 2023, he represented Tarn-et-Garonne in the regional competition for the best traditional baguette and the best butter croissant after scoring a double in the departmental event. The same year, he finished 4th in the national competition for the best almond cake.

This time, it is as a team that Alexandre will represent the artisanal know-how of Tarn-et-Garonne. Next Tuesday, January 21, in the afternoon, he will head to Lyon in the company of his colleague Thomas Péard, pastry baker at Bessou, in Saint-Etienne-de-Tulmont and Quentin Hemmer, baking professor at the School of Trades of the CFA of Montauban.

For Thomas and Quentin, this will be the second participation in the French Bakery Cup. “We ranked 7th in 2023. This time, we are going there with the ambition of grabbing the podium,” confides Quentin Hemmer. “Each time I participate in a competition it is to obtain the best possible result,” confirms Alexandre Haffner.

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Aucamville: three bakers on their way to the 2025 French Bakery Cup

In Lyon, a copious program awaits the three men. “Between Wednesday afternoon and Thursday, we have four tests to complete: Quentin will take care of the bread, Thomas of the artistic piece and me of the pastries. For the 4th test, the snacking, all three of us will be” , explains the Aucamvillois. The Tarn-et-Garonnais have already passed a rigorous selection process to have the right to be one of the 12 finalist teams for the 2025 French Bakery Cup.

The TF1 magazine “Sept à quatre” will follow the baker from Aucamville

The event is followed by national media. Our Tarn-et-Garonnais will have the honors of a report on TF1. “We were approached by the news magazine Sept à quatre (Editor's note: presented on Sunday by Harry Roselmack) which was looking for a business leader who likes to take part in competitions. The choice fell on Alexandre Haffner who will be the lead red of this report which wants to show behind the scenes They have already come to film him at his home in Aucamville and a TF1 team will even follow him in the AirBnB that he rented, with his family, during his stay in Lyon. , noted Christophe Passédat.

The president of the bakery union is the first supporter of Alexandre, Thomas and Quentin. “Frankly, I saw what they achieved during the training events and they are really in the right mood. A podium? That would be magnificent,” confides the boss of “Chez Lucien”. Christophe Passédat will be in the front row to follow the French Bakery Cup events. “At SIRHA, I will host the stand of the National Bakery Confederation. There are three sessions in the competition, our team is part of the first session. So, we will have to wait until Saturday evening before knowing the results.”