ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla, November 15, 2005 – The American Academy Chefs (AAC), the honor society of the American Culinary Federation (ACF), presented Ferdinand Metz, CMC, AAC, HOF, of Beacon, N.Y., with the inaugural AAC Lifetime Achievement Award during a special dinner on Nov. 13 at the Saratoga National Golf Club in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.

Metz serves as president emeritus of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) and as chairman of the National Restaurant Association Education Foundation (NRAEF). In addition, he is the president of the World Association of Cooks Societies (WACS), a worldwide organization of eight million culinarians in 74 countries and five continents. He served for four years as president of the American Culinary Federation, and led the ACF Culinary Olympic Team USA to three consecutive world championships. Metz was the first Certified Master Chef in the United States, and earned his Master of Business Administration (MBA) at the University of Pittsburgh. He currently is the president of Ferdinand Metz Culinary Innovations and the managing partner of Master Chefs' Institute.

The Lifetime Achievement Award will be given annually by the Academy to an outstanding chef who has provided leadership, motivation and inspiration to colleagues and to the youth of the culinary industry. The recipient will also have devoted much time to community service and be highly respected in the foodservice industry and by the Academy.

Proceeds from the dinner benefited the Academy’s general scholarship fund. The Academy, whose mission is to promote the education of future culinarians, offers various scholarships on an annual basis to undergraduate culinary students, as well as to professional chefs for continuing-education purposes.

The Academy, which recognizes those individuals who have made significant contributions to both the culinary profession and ACF, was established in 1955 at the ACF National Convention in Pittsburgh. Those credited with its founding include the legendary Pierre Berard, Peter Berrini and Paul Laesecke. Only about 800 out of approximately 18,000 ACF members belong to this elite group.

The American Culinary Federation, Inc. (ACF), established in 1929, is the premier professional organization for culinarians in America. With nearly 18,000 members and 240 chapters nationwide, ACF offers educational resources, training, professional certification, apprenticeship and accreditation programs. In addition, ACF is the presidium for the World Association of Cooks Societies (WACS), the international network of chefs associations, with more than eight million members globally. For more information, please visit www.acfchefs.org.