WV Department of Ed Awards Cast Iron Cook-Off Winners at Farm to School Conference
Charleston, W.Va. - The West Virginia Department of Education (WVDE) congratulates the teams that participated in the 2025 Junior Cast Iron Cook-Off. The competition was held during the WVDE Office of Child Nutrition’s recent Farm to School conference in Morgantown, West Virginia. Eight culinary teams from career technical education (CTE) programs planned, prepared and plated dishes and judges determined the winners. The Carver Career Center ProStart team was named the grand champion. Additionally, educators, farmers and partners attended the conference to explore opportunities to participate and expand farm-to-school efforts locally.
The Junior Cast Iron Cook-Off required the teams to use locally sourced ingredients to prepare a main dish and a dessert. With strict time requirements, all menu planning and preparation was completed onsite. Students did not know what they would prepare until the competition began.
Teams earning awards include
| Award | School | County |
|---|---|---|
| Honorable Mention (tie) | Monongalia Technical Education Center | Monongalia County |
| Honorable Mention (tie) | Tug Valley High School | Mingo County |
| Best Overall Dish | Carver Career Center | Kanawha County |
| Grand Champion | Carver Career Center | Kanawha County |
Other participating teams:
| School | County |
|---|---|
| Hedgesville High School | Berkeley County |
| James Rumsey Technical Institute | Berkeley County |
| Spring Mills High School | Berkeley County |
| Hampshire High School | Hampshire County |
| Wetzel County Technical Education Center | Wetzel County |
The event also featured a keynote speech from West Virginia’s only James Beard Award®-Winning Chef Paul Smith. The celebrated restaurateur and chef advocates for locally sourced foods in his businesses and encourages schools to do the same when possible.
“The less foods are processed, the healthier they are for our children. It may not always be possible, but we know that our local farmers are producing foods that taste good, are good for you and support our local economy,” Smith said.
“The conference was well received, and it allowed our farmers, administrators, educators, nutrition directors and organizational partners to learn important updates and to learn from each other,” said WVDE Child Nutrition Director Tony Crago. “When counties share best practices and lessons learned, we all benefit.”
A video of the Cook-Off is available on the WVDE YouTube channel.
More information about WVDE Child Nutrition is on the website.