He entered the NZ Association of Bakers’ Young Bread Baker of the Year competition alongside another workmate, and was surprised to win.
As well as a theory aspect, Berge had to produce a variety of different breads and delicious craft baking.
“I just tried my best and went there to have a good time and see what happened, and (I) wanted to push myself, and came out on top.”
He was looking forward to experiencing the baking culture overseas as part of his research grant, which could include visiting bakeries in France and Germany.
Berge enjoys the technical side of baking, such as different chemical reactions between ingredients and food products, and his favourite variety of bread is sourdough.
He joined Quality Bakers Goodman Fielder in Napier straight out of high school and has moved into different roles over the years, starting out packing bread before moving into the bakehouse.
He completed his baking qualification about two years ago, making him eligible to still enter the Young Bread Baker of the Year competition.
There were two classes of entry, an open class (with no age limit) and a young baker class where candidates must be 30 or younger.
Berge won the young baker category and Auckland’s Mavae Finekifolau won the open class.
There were six entrants this year for the competition, including three in the young baker category. Entrants had to pass a theory pretest to enter.
