When pastry creation is committed to the future
Each year, the Relais Desserts Charles Proust Competition is an invitation to push the boundaries of pastry creation. In 2026, the candidates will be invited to express themselves on a deeply committed subject:
“Future grows in our hands, the beauty of a world to preserve.”
This meaningful subject is as poetic as it is symbolic and highlights humanity’s responsibility towards our fragile planet. With sugar and chocolate, the pastry chefs will have to reflect this tension between threat and hope, fragility, and magnificence, by shaping their own personal and committed vision of tomorrow’s world.
An artistic piece that serves as a means of expression
The competition revolves around a vertical artistic piece made from sugar, Isomalt, pastillage, and chocolate. This pastry sculpture must embody the theme and serve as a showcase for three small tasting cakes.
Presented under a bell cover in a precisely dimensioned display case, this piece is a balancing act between creativity, technical skills, and harmony of materials. Each detail counts: volumes, lines, colours, clarity of the message and overall coherence.
Three small cakes, three expressions of the theme
The artistic expression continues into the tasting, with three small individual cakes (between 60 and 80g) incorporated into the piece:
• 1 small cake with chocolate as the main ingredient;
• 1 small cake made with local seasonal fruit;
• 1 small cake of their choice.
Beyond the taste, these creations must represent a strong creative approach directly linked to the theme. Texture, aromatic balance, originality and coherence with the artistic piece will be at the heart of the evaluation.
A competition based on excellence and transmission
The Relais Desserts Charles Proust Competition is open to pastry chefs, chocolate makers, and ice-cream makers from all over the world. Limited to 12 candidates, the competition will take place on Sunday 8 November 2026 at the Pavillon Gabriel in Paris.
Composed of renowned pastry chefs, the jury will evaluate the candidates anonymously, equally considering artistic creation and tasting.
Beyond the competition itself, this event reflects the founding values of Relais Desserts:
the transmission of know-how, creative daring, technical rigour, and a contemporary vision of patisserie that adapts to the major challenges of our time.
• Date of the competition: Sunday 8 November 2026
• Place: Pavillon Gabriel – Paris
• Pre-registrations: Until 30 June 2026
• Deadline for final registrations: 30 September 2026
• Theme: Future grows in our hands, the beauty of a world to preserve
You can access the full rules and registration procedures on the Relais Desserts website by clicking the following link here.
The images presented above were taken from the 2024 edition of the competition, the theme of which was “Will Artificial Intelligence take us to Mars?”. They illustrate the level of artistic requirement and the freedom of interpretation expected, but do not correspond to the 2026 theme.