Club Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie Team USA has gained a venerable new ally on its road to the 2027 Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie: King Arthur Baking Company, the 235-year-old, employee-owned flour producer based in Norwich, Vermont. The organization announced that King Arthur Baking Company has signed on as a bronze-level partner, as America’s top pastry chefs prepare for a competitive schedule that begins with the 2025 National Selection in Chicago.
Centuries-old mill, fresh commitment
Founded in 1790 and now America’s oldest flour company, King Arthur Baking Company built its reputation on consistent milling standards and a public mission to “spread the joy of baking.” Today the benefit corporation remains 100 percent employee-owned, a structure the company says reinforces long-term investment in quality. Its Bakery Foodservice division supplies professional kitchens with premium flours and hands-on expertise—resources that will now flow directly into Team USA’s training kitchens.
King Arthur Baking Company campus/King Arthur Baking Company
“We are truly honored to support Pastry Team USA as they compete on the world stage,” Jeff Yankellow, director of bakery and foodservice sales at King Arthur Baking Company, said in the partnership announcement. “Our commitment to the craft of baking, consistency and innovation aligns perfectly with the mission of Pastry Team USA.”
Why the partnership matters
At the Coupe du Monde, precision governs every plated dessert, chocolate entremets and sugar sculpture. Small variations in protein content or moisture absorption can make or break a pâte à choux or laminated dough. King Arthur Baking Company’s role, therefore, is more than a logo on a banner; it is the flour in every practice run and the technical counsel behind each adjustment.
Chef Stéphane Chéramy, president of Team USA, called the backing “invaluable in helping us advance our mission of pushing the envelope in American pastry. Their legacy of excellence in baking and their dedication to quality craftsmanship perfectly complement the vision we have for our team.”
The competitive calendar
Under Coupe du Monde rules, national teams qualify through a multistep process. For the United States, that path begins with the National Selection, scheduled for 6 September 2025 at Washburne Culinary and Hospitality Institute in Chicago during the Chicago Baking & Pastry Forum. There, finalists will vie for three spots on Pastry Team USA. Those chefs then move to the 2026 Americas Continental Selection next summer in New Orleans. Top finishers will earn a spot to compete at the Coupe du Monde de la Pâtisserie in Lyon in January 2027.
King Arthur Baking Company’s bronze partnership covers the full arc of that journey. The company joins a sponsor lineup anchored by the competition’s founding partner and Team USA platinum partner Valrhona, the French chocolate maker. Truffly Made and Gourmet Foods International also hold platinum status. Gold partners include Midwest Global Imports, photographer Paul Strabbing and AUI. Dobla, Nielsen-Massey Vanillas and Chef Rubber occupy the silver tier, while Paris Gourmet, The Pastry Depot and King Arthur Baking Company form the bronze group. Koerner Company and St. Michel serve as allied partners, and Chef Works | Bragard outfits the team.
What comes next
Preparations for the National Selection accelerate this summer, when prospective competitors will begin refining recipes that must withstand strict time limits and sensory scrutiny. King Arthur Baking Company will supply flours for practice and competition rounds, ensuring ingredient consistency from the first trial run in culinary-school kitchens to the spotlight of the Chicago finals.
For Team USA, consistency is the watchword for a contest where teams have 10 hours to create sugar sculptures, chocolate showpieces, frozen entremets, plated desserts and an artistic piece carved from ice or chocolate.
For the 235-year-old miller, the bronze partnership offers visibility among elite pastry circles and a chance to demonstrate that even the most avant-garde desserts begin with foundational ingredients. For Pastry Team USA, it delivers tangible backing as chefs chase precision down to the gram. Both parties frame the alliance as a meeting of shared priorities: craftsmanship, education and a relentless drive for excellence on the global stage.
As Chef Chéramy put it, the goal is simple: “ensuring that our chefs are poised for success on the global stage.” With King Arthur Baking Company now in the mix, Team USA moves one step closer to that objective.
The 2025 U.S. National Selection is scheduled for Sept. 6 at the Washburne Culinary & Hospitality Institute in Chicago, as part of the Chicago Baking & Pastry Forum. The forum, running from Sept. 4 to 6, offers culinary professionals and enthusiasts opportunities for education and networking. Tickets for the event—and to witness Team USA’s National Selection—are available through Eventbrite.
