Markon to Celebrate 10th Annual Chef Summit
September 24, 2025 | 3 min to read
From October 1 to 4, Markon will host its 10th anniversary Chef Summit in Monterey, California, uniting corporate and customer chefs to benefit the Taste of Markon. This culinary event supports the Drummond Culinary Academy, aiding at-risk youth. The summit will feature tours, discussions on industry trends, and collaboration on plant-focused dishes. Attendees will enjoy a fine dining experience while mentoring culinary students, making this milestone celebration a memorable community gathering.
Salinas, Calif. – Markon will celebrate the 10th anniversary of its iconic Chef Summit from October 1 to 4 in Monterey, California. This highly anticipated event brings together corporate chefs from Markon’s five member companies and their customer chefs from across the U.S. and Canada to support the fundraising efforts at The Taste of Markon. This unique dining experience benefits the company’s longtime community partner, the Drummond Culinary Academy at Rancho Cielo, a non-profit organization dedicated to serving at-risk youth in Monterey County.
This year’s milestone summit will include a week of field tours, roundtable discussions on industry trends, and direct interactions with suppliers and growers. Participants will collaborate to create innovative plant-focused dishes while mentoring young culinary students for the Taste of Markon, the cooperative’s fundraising event that will feature a strolling dinner with passed hors d’oeuvres, a charcuterie table, six fine dining courses, live music, selections from the region’s finest wineries, and a silent auction to benefit the culinary students through scholarships and kitchen equipment.
“We’re proud and excited to hold our 10th Annual Chef Summit, where chefs from across North America will present another Michelin-quality Taste of Markon. This education-focused week takes the chef group on the field-to-fork supply chain journey, giving them hands-on experience in how the fresh produce they buy reaches their restaurant kitchens, while our local culinary students gain invaluable experience working alongside seasoned chefs,” explained Andy Hamilton, Markon CEO. “This milestone year promises to be something truly special, bringing together the Salinas Valley community for a memorable meal created by the best in the business.”
Tickets are now available for purchase at LINK.
For more information about Rancho Cielo and how they are building skills and transforming lives, please visit:
Rancho Cielo’s Drummond Culinary Academy
About Markon
Markon Cooperative, Inc. brings a fresh approach and thinking to all its premium farm-to-table produce, including Markon First Crop, Markon Ready-Set-Serve, and Markon Essentials product lines, so foodservice operators can put their freshest ideas on the menu. Based in Salinas, California and nationally known as leaders in quality, consistency, and convenience, Markon serves as the produce purchasing, logistics, information, and marketing partner for its five member distributors (Ben E. Keith Foods, Gordon Food Service, Gordon Food Service Canada, Nicholas & Company, and Shamrock Foods Company) and their North American foodservice customers. Markon continues to introduce new products, time-saving, and innovative packaging based on the needs of our member and operator customers. Learn more about Markon’s commitment to providing the highest-quality, safest, and freshest produce at Markon.com.