Bittersweet

Economic recession finally reached the confectionery sector in the second half of 2009. The president of the Guild of Hungarian Confectioners, János Pataki spoke about the state of things, the way forward, innovation and professional events. Q: Recently you said that Hungarian confectionery still has its ‘artisan treasure box’ myth abroad. What did you mean by this? A: When talking to my foreign colleagues it seems to me that Hungarian confectionery’s past results are still respected in Europe. Q: Does this mean that our confectionery is more prestigious than our gastronomy? A: Our situation is easier, since we need fewer special base materials and most of them are available in Hungary as well. Q: How does the economic crisis affect the profession? A: Recession reached its peak in the last quarter of 2009: the turnover of confectioneries decreased by 15-30 percent, compared with the same period last year – and this means that the same proportion of employees were made redundant. Q: What can be done? A: There are no short term solutions, but I can understand those who started using cheaper base materials. However, it seems to me that people prefer eating quality cakes less frequently to consuming sweets of inferior quality. Marketing offers great opportunities to confectioners, for instance in calling attention to artisan products. Q: Besides being the president of the Guild, you also head other trade organisations. A: I am president of MNGSZ’S Confectioner Master Committee and I also work at the International Confectionery Association where we focus in interest representation. Q: Is the confectioner trade united? A: We do not always act united, but we are less divided than the gastronomy sector. We intended to support László Mihályi at the World Championship in Lyon, but his participation was organised by MGE and they did not need our help. Still many colleagues from the Guild went to Lyon to support him. Q: Does the Guild organise competitions? A: Of course. An increasing number of contestants enter our cake and ice-cream championship and in 2011 we will hold the first Confectioner of the Year contest. On 23-24 February, the Junior Confectioner World Championship will take place as part of UKBA. Q: Is the new generation coming up? A: Unfortunately not! The level of education is rather low and fewer confectioneries act as workshops for students. Q: How does János Pataki innovate? A: I visit trade fairs and participate in courses abroad. I concentrate on classic values but keep an eye on new trends as well.