The panel discussion, which was chaired by Mike Durden-Smith, focussed on future-proofing the talent pipeline and encouraging more young people to come into the hospitality industry.

The session involved Katya Simmons managing director of Nestlé Professional; Kate Nicholls chief executive of UKHospitality; David Mulcahy food & innovation director at Sodexo; Claire Bosi editor of Chef Publishing and Krishnan Doyle managing director of Core Recruitment.

Mulcahy said hospitality is an ‘amazing industry’ as it can take people in numerous directions. He added: “I think the one group of people in this room who always deserve a massive amount of credit is the lecturers and teachers. They really harness those young people, find that talent and unpick it and put them on their journey.”