MOF
This acronym holds the key to French artisanal excellence in over 200 professions. The title of MOF—an acronym for Meilleur Ouvrier de France, or France's Best Craftsperson—is awarded based on a competition (or, more accurately, a competitive exam), around every four years on average since 1924. The award-winners receive the certificate (the equivalent of a BAC +2 qualification in France), the medal, and the right to wear the MOF insignia or the red, white, and blue collar as a catering professional. In France, becoming an MOF is the greatest professional honor that anyone can get.
Joël Defives, Meilleur ouvrier de FranceSociété nationale des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
Joël Defives
58 years old—a baker since he was 16
"Working as a baker meant that I worked alone, late at night, quiet and hidden away, unobserved."
What got you into baking?
"As a child, I was dyslexic, but I didn't know it yet. I was quiet and withdrawn. I was treated like the class idiot and told I would never amount to anything. I'll never forget my first day as an apprentice. It was the first time that someone spoke to me like a man."
What made you want to become an MOF?
"I saw MOFs as being beyond my reach, and it was when I saw my boss's son prepare for the competition that I understood that it's by hard work and dedication that you can earn your own place, not by birth."
How did you find the training and the competition?
"One word comes to mind: inhumane. You don't know what I mean if you haven't done it. But it's a kind of suffering that turns into something good in the end. I took the exam twice because the first time, I was held back by my childhood demons, the classic 'you will never succeed.'"
What's changed in your life as a baker?
"We become the guardians at the temple gates. But every day, I have to give something back to the profession that gave me so much. I came from nothing, but I became a man through this job. After a while, your companion bakers are like your family. You'll realize what I mean by that when I tell you that I lost my parents at a very young age."
In your opinion, what's the most important quality in a baguette?
"The release of gasses and the shaping stage are both highly important for me. According to feeling, using my dough-worker's intuition, I can squeeze my baguette into the best possible shape to get a perfect bake."
Olivier Magne, Meilleur ouvrier de FranceSociété nationale des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
Olivier Magne
48 years old—33 years as a baker—third in a line of bakers in the small village of Saint-Julien-de-Jordane in the rural Cantal department
What made you want to become an MOF?
"The desire to have an illustrious career and to master my craft. The example set by Christian Vabret, and the desire to follow in his footsteps. If I hadn't studied at his school, I would never have left my small village."
How did you find the training and the competition?
"I took it three times. I failed twice because I simply wasn't on the same level as the finalists. I had to pick up new techniques each time, because the industry was evolving very quickly."
What's changed in your life as a baker?
"It gave me a new lease of life, and my second life began at 41. With this title, I could follow my dreams of traveling, starting with Argentina, Korea, and Kazakhstan … I would never have seen the world without this title."
In your opinion, what's the most important quality in a baguette?
"A huge helping of discipline, with nothing left to chance. Bakers must respect hundreds of steps while making bread. If you miss one or two, all is lost. A baguette mustn't be forced—you have to treat it gently and give it time. You must treat it like someone you love, and it will treat you well in return."
Christian Vabret, Meilleur ouvrier de France (prestigious award)Société nationale des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
Christian Vabret
67 years old—50 years as a baker—became an MOF in 1986
What got you into baking?/b>
"My father was a baker in a working-class neighborhood in Aurillac. My bed was above the oven, and I experienced the heat and the smell of the wood-fired oven, warm brioche for breakfast, and the reassuring sounds of him working through the night. And the baker's son is known throughout town—you can't stay anonymous."
What made you want to become an MOF?
"Firstly, it was curiosity, around 25 years after the Brevet de Maîtrise. My idol was Lionel Poilâne with his work with wood-fired ovens and his sense of style (he wore a jacket when everyone else was wearing a tank top), but he wasn't an MOF."
How did you find the training and the competition?
"Seven years spent in a bubble between the two competitions in 1982 and 1986. The only times I went out were to travel across France to see how the others were working."
What's changed in your life as a baker?
"The public recognition and the people around me. We become proud of our role, of this title which is like a professional version of the Legion of Honour. And you just have to see the fire in the eyes of the apprentices and students."
In your opinion, what's the most important quality in a baguette?
"You can do everything right and still have it all fall apart at the last moment. Nothing can be taken for granted until the bread comes out of the oven. Every loaf that comes out is a little miracle. And I'm still surprised every time I see a beautifully formed baguette come out of the oven."
Mickaël Chesnouard, Meilleur ouvrier de France by M Gain Nathanaël et le magasin M Crampon FrancoisSociété nationale des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
Mickaël Chesnouard
39 years old—a baker for 24 years
What got you into baking?
"I come from a family of artisans, but not bakers—potters. When I was little, I would help out in the workshop and be paid in pain au chocolat. And my mother would say, "you'll just have to become a baker." And so I did. And then it's the only business where the customers come in every day. That's why it's better than pottery!"
What made you want to become an MOF?
"I followed the usual route for people who want to go far in this industry—getting the CAP, the BEP, and the Brevet de maîtrise qualifications. But I decided to sign up following a stupid bet with a friend after a night of partying. Thinking, 'there's no way you'll actually do it!' but sometimes life takes an unbelievable turn."
How did you find the training and the competition?
"After leaving my small village, I wanted to rub shoulders with the best of the best. I trained for two years of madness, 18-hour long days. I'd never do that again, even though it got me the title. People think us infallible, but bakers doubt themselves all the time, and besides, baking is … not an exact science."
What's changed in your life as a baker?
"Everything's changed—the look of the profession, for a start. At the start, I didn't wear the jacket and I did it for the young bakers. I felt like a rock star around the apprentices. But we keep our feet on the ground. It's as we bakers say—if all good bakers were MOFs, and if all MOFs were good bakers, we'd know about it."
In your opinion, what's the most important quality in a baguette?
"Firstly, it's the choice of ingredients, flour from full-bodied and sweet wheat, and the fermentation. I would use sourdough starters, but I went back to using yeast because I listened to my customers, who liked the sweetness it brings. At the end of the day, we're making baguettes for our customers, not for ourselves. We may be artisans, but we're also businesspeople."
Frédéric Lalos, Meilleur ouvrier de FranceSociété nationale des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France
Frédéric Lalos
51 years—34 years as a baker
"When I was six, I told my parents that I wanted to be a baker, and I went against my teachers' wishes, since they thought I was too good a student to only do that."
What made you want to become an MOF?
"I spent some time at the Maison Lenôtre, which has always been an 'MOF factory.' At the time, there were red, white, and blue collars everywhere: ten MOFs in the pastry-making industries. Add to that the need to push oneself."
How did you find the training and the competition?
"If I had known how much preparation was involved, I wouldn't have gone through with it. Three years doing nothing but prepare! Really. I put my private life on hold, and dedicated my whole life to achieving that goal. Luckily, I managed to get the title. Otherwise, well, I'd rather not think about it."
What's changed in your life as a baker?
"The day I got the title was as special as the birth of my children! In the beginning. my dream was just to run my own boulangerie, but the real challenge was to also become a businessperson. I couldn't picture my life without the title. The world opened itself up to me."
In your opinion, what's the most important quality in a baguette?
"It's one of the most difficult products to master; you can see all its faults. The most important part for me is taste: a light lactic acidity, but not overly sour. I make my baguettes using poolish (a pre-ferment that makes baked goods soft). It is very sweet, while young people tend to prefer liquid starters that give a sourer flavor."
Vincent Ferniot
