World Cous Cous Championship

A friendly competition for peace

The Bia cous cous World Championship is the beating heart of the festival that pits ten countries against each other in an extraordinary culinary competition that celebrates friendship and brotherhood among peoples. Over the years, the World Championship has featured more than 200 chefs from 17 different countries who have submitted 163 unique recipes. By cooking together, year after year, grain after grain, we have built a bridge to peace, celebrating diversity and creating a universal bond through a single ingredient: cous cous.

The world's finest cous cous, the most beloved chefs, and the special awards given by both the technical and popular juries.

Beating heart of Cous Cous Fest is the Bia Cous Cous World Championship, where culinary competition merges with cultural integration. For over 15 years, Bia has sponsored this event, forming a significant union for the promotion of cous cous culture and its principles.

International chefs perform on the stage of the Bia Theatre, preparing live cous cous recipes with typical ingredients from their countries. A technical jury, composed of renowned chefs, food and wine journalists, and bloggers, along with a popular jury, immerse themselves in tasting the dishes, awarding prizes for the most original dish, the best presentation, and the best cous cous.

The World Championship competitions take place at the Bia Theatre in Piazza Santuario. It is possible to watch from the square and follow the events on the big screen.

To taste the dishes in competition and vote as a popular juror, you can purchase a ticket whose price varies depending on the different stages of the competition. Seating is limited.

This event is a magical moment where the audience savors culinary diversities through the most curious and audacious variations of international cuisines. The World Cous Cous Championship thus becomes the catalyst for a meeting between different worlds, uniting good food, fun, and emotions, creating a unique atmosphere where food becomes a universal language. We can't wait to discover who will be this year's next champion!

1998

Winner: Tunisia
Chef: Abdel Amid Alaya, Faouzi Sopissi, Benrhouma Messaouda
Other Participants: Algeria, Egypt, Italy, Morocco, Palestine

1999

Winner: Israel
Chef: Moshe Basson, Hlafo Fellah, Paola Moscati, Sarit Kahan
Other Participants: Algeria, Italy, Morocco, Tunisia
Jury President: Edoardo Raspelli

2000

Winner: Tunisia
Chef: Ycaoubi Lofti, Ben Slama Mong
Other Participants: Algeria, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine
Jury President: Edoardo Raspelli

2001

Winner: Palestine
Chef: Jacob Salbes, Alice Hasan Salim
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Giacomo Mojoli

2002

Winner: Italy
Chef: Giovanni Torrente, Luigi Pomata, Ignazio Piazza, Emanuele Russo
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Israel, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Giacomo Mojoli

2003

Winner: Morocco
Chef: Khadija Bensdira, Naja Boukhari
Other Participants: Brazil, Ivory Coast, Israel, Italy, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Enzo Vizzari
Show Lineup: Daniele Sepe, Slivovitz, Guidabasso, Mou, Alfio Antico, Tribù Zulu, Bisca, Taragnawa, Capuano Kosentia

2004

Winner: Tunisia
Chef: Arroum Mimoum, Messai Abdallah
Other Participants: Algeria, Ivory Coast, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal
Jury President: Enzo Vizzari

2005

Winner: Algeria
Chef: Sidali Lahlou, Tohuria Chabi
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Davide Paolini

2006

Winner: Ivory Coast
Chef: Abibata Konatè, Mimmo Castiglia
Other Participants: Brazil, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Davide Paolini

2007

Winner: Israel
Chef: Ronny Basson
Other Participants: Brazil, Ivory Coast, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Stefano Bonilli

2008

Winner: Ivory Coast
Chef: Abibata Konatè
Other Participants: France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Stefano Bonilli

2009

Winner: Italy
Chef: Enrico Bricarello, Vincenzo Caradonna, Giuseppe Favarolo
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, France, Israel, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Edoardo Raspelli

2010

Winner: Tunisia
Chef: Haier Aroie, Msoughi Alì
Other Participants: Algeria, Ivory Coast, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal
Jury President: Edoardo Raspelli

2011

Winner: France
Chef: Alice Delcourt
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Egypt, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Paolo Marchi

2012

Winner: France
Chef: Alice Delcourt
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Egypt, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia
Jury President: Paolo Marchi

2013

Winner: Israel
Chef: Boaz Cohen, Ronny Basson
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Egypt, Italy, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia, United States
Jury President: Roberto Perrone

2014

Winner: Italy
Chef: Andrea Provenzani, Giuseppe Salmeri
Other Participants: Ivory Coast, Eritrea, France, Israel, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, United States
Jury President: Paolo Marchi

2015

Winner: Italy and Mauritius< br>
Chef: Rocco Pace, Stefano De Gregorio, Vinobha Sookar
Other Participants: Brazil, France, Israel, Morocco, Mauritius, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia, United States
Jury President: Claudio Sadler

2016

Winner: Palestine
Chef: George Suheil Srour, Elias Bassous
Other Participants: Angola, Brazil, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Mauritius, Peru, Tunisia, United States
Jury President: Claudio Sadler

2017

Winner: Angola
Chef: Helt Araújo, Ricardo Braga
Other Participants: Angola, Ivory Coast, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Tunisia, United States
Jury President: Joe Bastianich

2018

Winner: Tunisia
Chef: Nabil Bakouss, Youssef Abdelli, Lamjed Hosn
Other Participants: Angola, Ivory Coast, France, Israel, Italy, Morocco, Palestine, Senegal, Spain, United States
Jury President: Fiammetta Fadda

2019

Winner: Senegal
Chef: Mareme Cisse
Other Participants: United States, Morocco, Tunisia, Italy, Israel, Palestine
Jury President: Enzo and Paolo Vizzari

2020

Skipped Edition

2021

Winner: Romania
Chef: Claudia Catana
Other Participants: Italy, Senegal, Spain, Morocco, Mauritius, Argentina, Afghanistan
Jury President: Eleonora Baldwin

2022

Winner: Italy
Chef: Pierpaolo Ferracuti
Other Participants: Argentina, Brazil, Ivory Coast, France, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia
Jury President: Paolo Marchi

2023

Winner: Mexico
Chef: Diana Beltran, Rodrigo Zepeda Sánchez
Other Participants: Italy, Portugal, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Palestine, Israel
Jury President: Giusi Battaglia

2024

Winner: Marocco
Chef: Hanae Chaoui e Mourad Dakir
Other Participants: Italia, Tunisia, Russia, Cina, Ucraina, Palestina, Israele, Eritrea, Medici Senza Frontiere
President of the jury: Oscar Farinetti