Nearly 50 of Britain’s top food and drink manufacturing businesses have been shortlisted to receive an award in our showcase of food and industry excellence. See the full list of shortlisted businesses below.
Representatives of all the shortlisted firms, alongside sponsors and leading food and drink industry figures will gather at the Lancaster hotel in central London tomorrow night (November 3) for the carnival-themed awards presentation.
The evening will be hosted by TV star Mark Durden-Smith, fresh from presenting television coverage of the Rugby World Cup.
Rugby World Cup
From food and drink manufacturing giants – employing thousands of people – to modestly sized businesses, with a few employees, each shortlisted firm impressed our independent judging panel, led by Paul Wilkinson, chair of the National Skills Academy.
In addition to category awards – for Ambient, Bakery, Beverages, Chilled, Fresh and Dairy, Meat and poultry manufacturing company of the year – other awards will recognise top achievements in the field of Best use of new food ingredients, Environmental initiative of the year and Supply chain initiative of the year.
Three other awards will recognise the Training programme of the year, Judges’s star performer of the year and Small and medium-sized innovation of the year.
Young talent of the year
Six leading food industry figures have been shortlisted for the Food Manufacture Personality of the year and the Young talent of the year awards.
The night will culminate in the big one – the Food Manufacture Company of the Year, last year scooped by Dawn Meats.
For more information about our big awards night, click here.
Good luck to all the shortlisted firms and individuals (see table below). See you at the Lancaster in London tomorrow night.
Meanwhile, to whet your appetite for the glittering awards evening, don't miss this video interview with Waitrose technical manager Jonathon Bayne on the calibre of this year's entries.
The Food Manufacture Excellence Awards
Ambient
- Chika's Food
- Essential Cuisine
- Fudge Kitchen
- Glanbia Performance Nutrition
- Kolak
- Sleaford Quality Foods
Bakery, sponsored by Alcontrol
- Butt Foods
- Deli Santé
- Finsbury Food Group
- Ginsters
- Premier Foods (Mr Kipling)
- The Village Bakery
Beverages
- Aston Manor Cider
- CocaCola Enterprises
- Fruitapeel Juice
Chilled, fresh and dairy
- Mash Direct
- Samworth Bros (Kettleby Foods)
- Willowbrook Foods
- Worldwide Fruit
- Wyke Farms
- Yorvale
Meat and poultry, 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
- SupergreenChips
- 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
- CocaCola 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 mediumsized enterprise innovation of the year
- Butt Foods
- Chika's Food
- Fudge Kitchen
- Hannan Meats
- Winning Blend/Welsh Pantry
For more information about the food and drink manufacturing industry’s best night out, click here.