Christmas is still a long way off but the competitions dedicated to the most famous desserts of the holidays are already starting. The Panettone World Championship has just ended this year too, the international competition dedicated to great leavened products, now in its fourth year, after the individual editions of 2019 and 2021 and the first team competition in 2023.
Organized by the Academy of Masters of Mother Yeast and Italian Panettone, with the patronage of the Ministry of Agriculture, and in collaboration with HostMilano, the championship saw the participation of 9 teams from all over the world.
For 2025, teams from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, Germany, Japan, Peru, Spain and Taiwan competed. Each team created three types of panettone: the classic Italian one, the chocolate one and, for the first time, the “Innovative Ice Cream Panettone”, which involved the use of ingredients typical of their territory.
The tests also included a circular single portion, based on sustainable economic principles, a “Mother yeast flower” made with its own yeast and a decorated panettone inspired by the Milanese showcase dedicated to fashion. The judges’ evaluation considered not only the goodness, appearance and leavening of the panettone, but also the cleanliness, the organization of the laboratory and the sustainability of the processes.
The Panettone World Championship is the only competition in which the great leavened products are made entirely “live”, under the supervision of the competition commissioners and with the laboratory activities filmed by cameras 24 hours a day.
The winners
Surprisingly, the Taiwanese team took first place, followed by Argentina and Australia. Taiwan also received the award for the best circular single portion and convinced the juries for the overall quality of the leavened products, resulting in the team with the highest score at the end of the competition.
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Other special prizes were awarded to Germany (best showcase display and best sourdough flower), Australia (best innovative panettone served with ice cream), Argentina (best teamwork and best cleanliness in the laboratory) and China (sustainability in production).
