Reducing this year’s 100-strong crop of entries to a shortlist of fewer than 50 firms was incredibly challenging, said Wilkinson, who is also chair of the National Skills Academy and former chairman of Thorntons.
Commenting on the shortlist – reproduced in full below – Wilkinson said: “We have always had good submissions, but this year’s entries were better presented and much more clearly made their case for winning. This made the selection process much harder for the judges.”
In nearly all the awards categories most entries could have been worthy winners, he said. “We had to find that unique difference that stood out. Often the judges had to vote by secret ballot to choose the winner.”
Key trend
A key trend of the 2015 entries was the focus on actions that delivered success. “In many cases the combination of sustainability and investment converged to make good business sense,” said Wilkinson.
“Innovation and category positioning are now an essential part of the checklist. Productivity and the role of skills in driving performance featured strongly in this year’s entries.”
From each of the category winners, listed below, the judges have chosen an overall winner – the Food Manufacture Company of the Year, sponsored by Oghma Partners. This, together with the other award winners, will be announced at our carnival-themed awards celebration taking place at the Lancaster hotel in London on Tuesday November 3.
Hosting the awards ceremony will be TV star Mark Durden-Smith.
Book your place at the best night out in the British food and drink manufacturing industry by contacting Jane Rollinson. Telephone +44(0)1293 610439 or email Jane.Rollinson@wrbm.com.
Meanwhile, don’t miss this video interview with FMEA judge Waitrose technical manager Jonathon Bayne on the quality of this year’s entries.
Food Manufacture Excellence Awards:the shorlist
Ambient manufacturing company of the year
- Chika’s Food
- Essential Cuisine
- Fudge Kitchen
- Glanbia Performance Nutrition
- Kolak
- Sleaford Quality Foods
Bakery manufacturing company of the year, sponsored by Alcontrol
- Butt Foods
- Deli Santé
- Finsbury Food Group
- Ginsters
- Premier Foods (Mr Kipling)
- The Village Bakery
Beverages manufacturing company of the year
- Aston Manor Cider
- Coca-Cola Enterprises
- Fruitapeel Juice
Chilled, fresh and dairy manufacturing company of the year
- Mash Direct
- Samworth Bros (Kettleby Foods)
- Willowbrook Foods
- Worldwide Fruit
- Wyke Farms
- Yorvale
Meat and poultry manufacturing company of the year, sponsored by Dasic
- Cargill
- Faccenda Foods
- Hannan Meats
- Moy Park
- 2 Sisters Food Group
- Tulip
Best new use of food ingredients
- Appy Food and Drinks
- Moral Fibre Food
- Sidney B Scott & Sons
- Supergreen-Chips
- Tulip
Environment initiative of the year
- Aston Manor Cider
- Ginsters
- Moy Park
- Samworth Bros (Kettleby Foods)
- Winning Blend/Welsh Pantry
- Wyke Farms
Supply chain initiative of the year, sponsored by NFT
- Coca-Cola Enterprises
- Fruitapeel Juice
- Ginsters
- Hannan Meats
- Tulip
- 2 Sisters Food Group
Training programme of the year, sponsored by The National Skills Academy
- Essential Cuisine
- Sleaford Quality Foods
- Tulip
- Weetabix
Young talent of the year, sponsored by B3 Jobs
- Michael Andrew (Tulip)
- Alex Barton (ABP UK)
- Seana Boyle (Willowbrook Foods)
- Jack Hamilton (Mash Direct)
- Caitlin Johnstone (The Welsh Pantry)
- Amber Wild (Worldwide Fruit)
- Robert Willatt (Freshpack)
Judges’ star performer, sponsored by Lauras International
- Aston Manor Cider
- Deli Santé
- 2 Sisters Food Group
- The Village Bakery
- Willowbrook Foods
Small and medium-sized enterprise innovation of the year, sponsored by Sanderson Group
- Butt Foods
- Chika’s Food
- Fudge Kitchen
- Hannan Meats
- Winning Blend/Welsh Pantry
Food Manufacture Personality of the Year
- Kevin Brennan, chief executive, Quorn Foods
- Lucinda Bruce-Gardyne, founder, Genius Foods
- Jeremy Hall, group technical director Bernard Matthews
- Christine Tacon, Groceries Code Adjudicator
- Chris Thomas, chief executive, Tulip
- Roger Whiteside chief executive, Greggs