The competition, part of the Taste of Australia event, was organised by the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) and supported by Vietnam’s Graduates from Australia Club (VGAC).

It had two rounds – an online one held from May 12-June 4; and a final round held on June 25 in Ho Chi Minh City.

All contestants registered for the online round submitted video clips with two cups with two different patterns from four subjects - Heart, Tulip, Rosetta and Swan.

Sixteen submissions competed in the final round and the top three winners were chosen by a panel of judges featuring: Dang The Lan (Alumnus of Central Queensland University; Founder and Managing Director, The Lovely Cup O’ Coffee; 3rd Place Winner of the Southern Region Latte Art Championship in 2013 Australia); and Pham Minh Luan (Alumnus of RMIT Vietnam; Founder, Hyper Coffee).

The three guest judges for the competition were: Rebecall Ball, Senior Commissioner of Austrade; MasterChef Ngo Thanh Hoa; and Art Director Le Quy Duong.

The competition was supported by many Australian institutions, importers and associations with many prizes including hospitality courses with international certificates.

It aimed to: promote training in F&B and hospitality through alumni and Australian training providers; raise awareness of Australian coffee culture; and connect businesses between Australia and Vietnam for education and import opportunities.

Rebecca Ball, Austrade’s Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner, said: “Australia is home to top universities specializing in Hospitality and Tourism Management in the world rankings and its vocational system and qualifications are highly respected around the world. Our education and training providers have significant expertise in equipping employees with the skills and knowledge to service customers that are increasingly global and more discerning. This is important because a better trained workforce will deliver greater customer satisfaction, higher spending, and most importantly, repeat visits to Vietnam.”

The competition offered the opportunity to experience Australian culture through the showcasing of imported products, tasting Australian meat pie and offering new experiences with AR interaction.

Taste of Australia is an annual celebration of Australia’s world class food and beverages in Vietnam. Its objective is to promote premium Australian produce to Vietnamese industry and consumers through business, trade and public events and via social and traditional media activities. It also seeks to reinforce Australia’s reputation as a supplier of high quality, safe and sustainable food and beverages.

PV