Canada took the spotlight on 16 April 2024 as the first Canadian stop of the new Gelato Festival World Masters season, the travelling competition searching for the world’s best gelato flavours.

How the Ontario round worked

The event was held in Mississauga, Ontario, at the premises of the local Carpigiani distributor, with 20 gelato and ice cream makers competing for a place in the 2024 North American Semifinals. Carpigiani North America organised the challenge with Gelato Festival and Sigep – Italian Exhibition Group, the premier artisan gelato trade show. The tour aims to spread the culture of artisan gelato worldwide.

On the day, each chef made their gelato in a kitchen supplied by the organisers. Industry experts, local chefs and food journalists then tasted and scored the entries. The three top flavours moved on to the North American Semifinals of Gelato Festival World Masters in 2024.

About Gelato Festival

Gelato Festival debuted in Florence in 2010, inspired by the first gelato recipe, created by the architect Bernardo Buontalenti in 1559. It grew across Italy, Europe and, from 2017, the United States, with 80 festivals held. The 2021 Gelato Festival World Masters took it worldwide, finishing in December 2021 with a win for Adam Fazekas of Budapest and a record 3,500 gelato artisans judged by international juries.

What this means for gelato makers in New Zealand

If competition-style gelato appeals to you, the first step is the right machine and know-how. Majors Group supplies Carpigiani gelato machines and offers Carpigiani Gelato University courses for makers in New Zealand.

Source: Carpigiani news. Rewritten for New Zealand by Majors Group.