Army chefs from across the country will be out to prove their culinary skills at Bulford as they compete in one of the Military's most prestigious catering contests, the 3^rd (United Kingdom) Division Improvised Field n Cookery Competition. This year's event is the first for a couple of years due to the demands of deployment.

The aim of the competition is for Military cooks to practice and enhance their field cookery skills and techniques by setting up a temporary kitchen in the open. The teams then have to produce a three-course meal for five in just two and a half hours from fresh rations given to them on the day.

This year the rations will include rabbit, pigeon, and wild produce like mushrooms and berries. The cooks will also have access to a "larder" where they can pick items to enhance their menus such as tomato puree, flour, herbs, salt and garlic.

Before they even start cooking they have to build their own kitchens and cookers with equipment they have brought along such as tents, tables, shovels, pickaxes, fire wood and water - bricks are provided!

More than 20 teams, who are based as far away as North Yorkshire, Norfolk, and Kent, as well as locally from Tidworth and Bulford, will be judged on a number of different criteria. These include hygiene, food preparation, menu, timings, health and safety and use of materials. Speed, skill and imagination will also be essential ingredients on the day.