BACKGROUND:

In 1986, Pierre Romeyer, one of Belgium’s great chefs, became aware of the risks of food abuses. With his friend Paul Bocuse, he contacted other well-known chefs, who were passionate about their profession in all of the European countries: Wegner Vogel in Sweden, Gualtiero Marchesi in Italy, Juan Mari Arzak in Spain, Cas Spijkers in the Netherlands, Myrtle Allen in Ireland, Arne Fusager in Denmark, Eckart Witzighann in Germany, Michel Da Costa in Portugal, René Jacquemin in Luxembourg, David Miller in the United Kingdom and a few others; to set up the Euro-Toques Association.

The President of the European Commission at that time, Mr. Jaques Delors, acknowledged the Association Euro-Toques as a lobby for the defence of Food Quality in the same year. 

In each country, national offices were set up and all of these chefs reject the shift towards standardisation in the area of food and advocate the respecting of diversity. Culinary Europe has to remain a patchwork of tastes and colours in order to fully retain its charm. A fundamental cultural question is posed, that of our identity. Altogether, they decided to « Act in order not to suffer » Successive chairpersons of Euro-Toques International
Pierre Romeyer : Belgium (1986-1990)
Paul Bocuse : France (1990-1994)
Myrtle Allen : Ireland (1994-1997)
Lars « Pluto » Johansson : Sweden (1997-2000)
Gualtiero Marchesi : Italy (2000-2003)
Pedro Subijana : Spain (2003-2006)
Fred Dijsselbloem : Netherlands (2006-)