10-year-old Jaiye-Gbenle wins Eko Flavour Junior Champion’s N3m prize

A 10-year-old chef, Boluwatife Jaiye-Gbenle, has won a ₦3 million cash prize in the Lagos State Government Culinary Food Cooking Competition, tagged Eko Flavours Junior.

The competition, organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems in conjunction with the Culinara Group, was held at the Fresh Food Hub, Idi Oro, Mushin area of Lagos State.

The Eko Flavours Junior Project is a culinary competition for children between 10 and 13 years old to showcase their talents in making delightful meals and to discover young cooking talents to promote a healthy food culture.

The winner, Jaiye-Gbenle, defeated over 200 participants to become the Eko Flavours Junior Champion and Ambassador of the Lagos Food System, while Oluwaseyifunmi Quassi emerged as first runner-up with a ₦2 million prize. James Okafor and Akinsola Oluwatobiloba both emerged as second runners-up, winning ₦1 million each.

Adelugba Semilore, Agugua Kamsi, Princess Tifeoluwani, Muhammadul Awwal Tijani, Oluwatara Semilore Marvellous, and Adewara Daystar, who were part of the top 10 finalists, were also rewarded for their efforts with consolation prizes.

Speaking during the final of the competition, which was attended by government officials, sponsors from private organisations, and a large turnout from various sectors, the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Food Systems, Ms Abisola Olusanya, said the initiative was conceived by the wife of the Governor, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, to encourage creativity and teamwork among children as well as pride in the nation’s food heritage.

Olusanya expressed optimism that the competition would create job opportunities and a sustainable future in the food sector, urging participants to see the platform as a stepping stone to greater heights in the culinary industry.

“It is a big win for the winners. Everyone here won today. But I think more importantly, we have achieved our aim of showcasing the culinary skills of our kids and also exposing them to the fact that there is a lot of opportunity in the food system space.

“For the winners, I believe they are going to get endorsement deals from some of our sponsors. They would work with us in the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems as our ambassadors.

“We have a lot of events that we also need catering services for, so nothing stops them from being a part of us. And that is the essence of what we are doing: creating chefs, master creators, and food content creators for the future,” she stated.

The co-CEOs of Culinara Group, Mrs Olufunke Adu and Jennifer Odufuwa, in their remarks, commended all the participants for putting in their best efforts in the competition, declaring that they were all winners.

Adu said Eko Flavour Junior was organised to encourage a shift from the traditional white-collar job mindset and inspire young minds to embrace culinary and other vocational skills to succeed in life.

She challenged parents to train their children from a young age in cooking, washing, and other household chores to make them useful to themselves and to society at large.

Odufuwa said about 200 participants took part in the event, from which 10 and then 20 semi-finalists were selected, eventually producing the 10 finalists who competed in the Grand Finale that crowned Jaiye-Gbenle as Eko Flavour Junior Champion.

“We want to encourage the children that beyond the classroom, they can take on leadership roles in terms of the skills and the things that bring family together, which is cooking.

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“Cooking is one of the things that bring families together. We want the kids to know that they can aspire to be somebody within the food ecosystem,” she said.

The winner, Jaiye-Gbenle, said he was excited to win the cooking competition and appreciated his mother for teaching him how to cook from the age of nine.

“I am very happy for winning the competition. My mother taught me how to cook. I want to say thank you very much to my mother for teaching me how to cook.

“I want to advise other co-contestants that did not win today not to give up. They should try again and try harder,” he said.

Some of the participants also thanked the Lagos State Government for giving them the platform to display their creative cooking skills.

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