FMEAs 2025: Meet the judges

You can enter the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards here​​​​, with the ceremony to be held on 6 February 2025 at the London Hilton, Bankside.

Ash Stretton

Job title​: Food regulatory affairs manager

Company​: Marks & Spencer

Bio:​ Ash Stretton joined M&S in early 2022 having previously spent 15 years in manufacturing working with some of the largest manufacturers in the world in both full time and consulting roles.

During this time, Stretton worked in variance roles from production, operations, process improvement to quality and technical management.

He is a labelling and regulatory expert, responsible for regulatory compliance across the food part of the business, developing policy, providing business support, reviewing emerging risks, providing governance and compliance framework and external discussions with government and NGOs.

Stretton is also a fellow of the IFST, RSPH and ILM, a chartered scientist and charted quality person holding several degrees, including BA (Hons), PG Cert, PG Diploma(s), MBA, LLM and MSc.  

Anne-Frances Ball

Job title: ​Vice president for production UK

Company: ​Arla Foods

Fran Ball is VP for production UK at Arla Foods, a farmer owned global dairy cooperative. She is passionate about developing people, diversity and culture to enable manufacturing excellence and this is something she is looking for from this year's entries into the Employers of the Year Award. 

Arla has already launched a clear strategy across its supply chain to attract, retain, develop and create more positive gender representation and is committed to helping attract and promote food manufacturing as a career choice amongst a more diverse population. 

Ball will be helping to select the finalists and winners for Employer of the Year and ESG Excellence - which were both taken home by Arla last year, alongside its win of the grand champion prize. Ball will also be part of the Health Hero Awards selecting the best in our industry from the entries in these categories.

Tim Watsham

Job title: ​CEO

Company: ​Butcher's Pet Care

Tim Watsham began his career as a chartered accountant with Deloitte, before moving into the F&B industry where he has spent the majority of his working life. He has held senior finance positions in Tesco in the UK, and spent more than 5 years with Dyson in finance and operations roles, including 3.5 years living in Shanghai, China driving rapid growth in the local market through a focus on retail and supply chain excellence.

Returning to the UK, Watsham joined Butcher’s Pet Care, initially as CFO, before becoming CEO in 2021. Butcher’s operates a large food factory in the heart of the country, where it makes natural wet food for cats and dogs – with the leading dog food brand in the UK, and the fastest growing premium cat brand. He is passionate about authentic brands that deliver real points of difference for consumers – offering products that go a step beyond the mainstream.

Nicola Thomas

Job title: ​Director

Company: ​UK Food and Drink Exporters Association

Nicola Thomas is an award-winning food and drink export specialist with over 25 years’ experience in helping ambitious SMEs and mid-market companies accelerate their expansion into overseas markets. 

She works alongside management teams to break through the ‘pain points’ associated with exporting and to achieve sustainable and profitable international growth.

She is also a director of the UK Food and Drink Exporters Association (FDEA) which is a thriving community of over 500 active exporters, dedicated in-market experts in 25+ territories around the world and experts in all aspects of international trade. 

The FDEA provides practical support for companies expanding overseas with a programme of insight sessions, focus groups and training workshops.

Thomas has designed and delivered a wide range of export support programmes for organisations including the Department of Business and Trade, Scotland Food and Drink, Food and Drink Wales, and Santander Bank.

Daksha Stancilas

Job title:​ ​Talent & development partner

Company:​ ​Pret A Manger

Daksha Stancilas currently leads the emerging talent and development agenda at Pret A Manger, this includes early careers, the education and attraction of young people, commercial qualifications, and Pret's apprenticeship strategy.

Stancilas is passionate about inspiring and preparing young people for their futures, regardless of background, and is committed to providing great career opportunities in the hospitality sector and with Pret.

Louis Bedwell 

Job title: ​Business unit lead

Company: ​Future Food Movement

Louis Bedwell joined Future Food Movement in 2024 and supports the business in scaling its membership across the food industry.

Future Food Movement exists to support food companies in closing the climate skills gap and has reached more than 1m people, supporting companies like Sainsbury's, Greencore, SSP, and many others.
Bedwell previously served as managing director of the industry's leading innovation accelerator, where he met with more than 1,500 purpose-led startups each year and helped market leaders invest in emerging technologies and innovations.

Kate Clawson

Job title: ​Head of Manufacturing

Company: ​Sleaford Quality Foods

Kate Clawson joined Sleaford Quality Foods in 1999 part-time, aged just 16, for a holiday job whilst studying for her A levels.

Seeing the potential to forge a career, she decided to take on a full-time role after leaving school, initially working on the shop floor so she could learn as much as she could about how the entire business worked.

After a successful spell in an admin role, she became production manager in 2004 taking on full responsibility for the running of the factory.

In 2016, she was promoted to head of manufacturing, taking on additional responsibilities throughout the next 7 years.

In 2024, she became the inaugural winner of Food Manufacture Excellence Factory Manager of the Year Award, and this year joins the judging panel to help select the 2025 nominees and winner.

Alec Kyriakides

Job title: ​Food safety consultant

Company: ​Self employed

Alec Kyriakides was head of quality, safety and supplier performance at Sainsbury’s for 28 years, with expertise in microbiology. He now works as an independent consultant to the food industry, advising businesses, large and small on all aspects of food safety and quality management. He is a board trustee of the IFST, a non-executive board director of Campden BRI, and chair of the BRCGS International Advisory Board.

Charlotte Langdon

Job title: ​Partner

Company: ​Menzies LLP

As a partner at Menzies, Charlotte Langdon manages a diverse portfolio of SME and PE backed clients, focusing on the manufacturing and construction industries, and serves as the head of the manufacturing sector. Beyond audit and compliance, she provides proactive advice and commercial solutions to help clients navigate challenges.

Stephen French

Job title: ​Scientific policy director / Owner

Company: ​IFST / Scientific Intelligence Ltd

Stephen French is responsible for leading IFST policy development and engagement on scientific and technical issues, and policy relevant to IFST mission in education, skills and professional recognition; liaising with key government departments from the UK nations, key opinion leaders, and food sector industry leaders to support the IFST mission.

In addition, he consults with the food sector and academic institutes to support scientific, policy, strategy and innovation.

Since graduating from University of Sheffield with a BSc. (Hons) in Physiology and a Ph.D. in Gastrointestinal Physiology and Nutrition, he had an academic career in research and teaching prior to joining Mars Inc. 

During his time with Mars Inc., French worked in a variety of research and scientific and regulatory affairs roles for the organisation in European and global positions, and in confectionery, food, and pet food sectors of the business. French is now also adjunct associate professor at Indiana School of Public Health.

Donna Fordyce

Job title: ​Chief executive

Company: ​Seafood Scotland

Donna Fordyce is the chief executive of Seafood Scotland, the national trade marketing body for the Scottish seafood industry.

Prior to that, she held a number of roles with the organisation, initially as an industry engagement specialist before moving into the leadership role.

She has a passion for the seafood industry and excellent knowledge of all aspects of the supply chain. She is respected across the sector for her ability to build relationships and find common ground and has pioneered a number of initiatives to promote seafood to global and home markets.

Before during and after Brexit, Fordyce has been a trusted leader in the Scottish seafood sector, helping to put in place practical support to equip fishers, producers and processors with the skills and funds needed to continue to export successfully. This expertise was also instrumental during the Covid pandemic, ensuring that the industry recovered robustly.

She is involved in setting the future ambitions for the industry including the use of automation to transform processes and has a leading role in attracting young people to build challenging and rewarding careers. She is also instrumental in driving the recovery of the langoustine sector.

Seafood Scotland operates worldwide, alongside government agencies such as Scottish Development International, to promote the wealth of Scottish seafood to a global trade market, which increasingly values the quality and provenance that Scottish seafood is famed for. Focusing on the global retail and catering trade, the organisation targets trade buyers, wholesalers, industry influencers and chefs in the US, Europe (including the UK), the Middle East and Asia – acting as the conduit between in-country trade markets and Scottish suppliers. 

Laetitia Rocha        ​

Job title: ​​ Global R&D internal capability director

Company: ​​PepsiCo

Laetitia Rocha currently leads a cultural transformation initiative which spans global R&D and PepsiCo, anchored in its pep+ strategy for ‘Positive Choices’.

An R&D professional and a registered nutritionist, Rocha has managed a broad range of projects from front-end innovation, technology innovation, M&A to product launch, in Europe and Africa, for several FMCG.

Corrine Toyn

Job title: ​Marketing consultant

Company: ​Chickpea marketing

Corrine Toyn is a registered dietitian and founder of Chickpea Marketing, a marketing and nutrition consultancy on a mission to grow healthy food, beverage and wellness brands.

She has worked in the food and drink industry for 6 years, including for Abbott and M&S; and also led the UK healthcare professional marketing team at Benecol Ltd, owned by the Raisio Group.

She utilises her dietetic insight to help brands connect with health-conscious consumers and champion evidence-based nutrition through the power of marketing. Toyn is also passionate about raising the profile of dietitians and nutritionists working in the food and drink industry and hosts The Dietitian Café podcast. In her spare time, she also volunteers as the chair of the British Dietetic Association Industry Specialist Group.

Alison Johnson

Job title: ​MD

Company: ​Food Forensics

Alison Johnson​ is the managing director and founder of Food Forensics, a UKAS-accredited testing laboratory and solution provider. With 15 years of experience in the meat industry, Johnson identified a critical gap in the market for authenticity testing solutions and established Food Forensics in 2012.

Under her leadership, the company has grown into a leading authority in its field, offering comprehensive testing, insights, and intelligence to manage food risks and protect brand integrity. Food Forensics is recognised as a Centre of Expertise for Food Authenticity testing, delivering a wide array of solutions across the food industry.

Caroline Page

Job title: ​Supply chain and nutrition lead

Company: ​Raynor Foods

Caroline Page is the supply chain and nutrition lead at Raynor Foods. She is a registered nutritionist and has a BSc (Hons) degree in Nutrition and Public Health, with technical experience in the food industry within ready meals and the food to go sector, including 9 years working at Raynor Foods.  

She is passionate about how the food industry can impact and improve the health of their consumers through their products and innovation.

Ramona Hazan

Job title:​ ​Founder

Company:​ ​Ramona’s Kitchen

Ramona Hazan, founder of Ramona’s Kitchen, brought Levantine textures and flavours to the UK market inspired by her Mediterranean heritage. The business specialises in houmous and falafel based on her family’s traditional recipes with a contemporary twist. Today, 20 years on, ‘RAMONA’S Heavenly Houmous’ is the UK’s No.1 houmous brand, winning many prestigious awards and driving new shoppers to the category.

Hazan has a passion for food but her continual dedication and persistence to deliver a brand that stands out from the crowd and that people love has resulted in listings in most major supermarkets in the UK.  

Jodie Craig

Job title: ​Owner and executive coach

Company: ​Jodie Craig Coaching

Jodie Craig is an ICF accredited coach and human resources executive, as well as being a certified practitioner in DISC, The Leadership Profile and Barretts Values Centre Leadership 360.

She is passionate about helping leaders and teams transform into excellent communicators, collaborators and peak performers.

She has 20 years of experience in leading large teams and partnering with business leaders, and a track record of developing high performing teams in complex, international organisations.

Richard Singleton

Job title: ​Finance and sustainability director

Company: ​Menzies LLP

As the finance and sustainability director at Menzies, Richard Singleton helps clients design ESG strategies that enhance competitive advantage, increase top and bottom-line growth, improve stakeholder engagement, and create supply chain robustness, all while maintaining strong financial controls and performance.

Amy Wilkinson

Job title​

Company:​

Amy Wilkinson is the founder of Fearless Foodies and co-host of the award winning Oh for foods Sake podcast, which helps foodies across manufacturing and retail with their personal and professional development.

Her own career spans 25 years in food manufacturing roles across multiple different functions, including NPD, marketing and commercial. Her mission is to make the food industry a happier place to work.

Martin Macfarlane

Job title:​  R&D director - head of global formulation

Company:​ Unilever ice cream

Martin Macfarlane has worked for Unilever for 20 years. He originally focussed on ensuring the safety of products and manufacturing for consumers, employees and the environment for various products across personal care and foods. He then moved to ice cream design, developing recipes and technologies to give new consumer benefits and experiences.

After 4 years as head of R&D for the Europe, AMESAA and NASEA regions in the Pepsi Lipton Joint Venture, he has now returned to ice cream where he leads the global formulation team.

Andy Richardson

Job title:​​ Partner

Company:​​ European Food & Farming Partnership

Andy Richardson was educated at Magdalen College School, going on to study an honours degree in agriculture. He joined Unilever in 1989, then Bocm Pauls where he held several commercial roles including marketing manager.

In 2000, he joined Volac, the dynamic UK dairy nutrition business, becoming director of corporate affairs and sustainability before leaving in February 2023.

He has a passion for British food and drink and chaired the Welsh Dairy industry review in 2015. He previously chaired the Welsh Food & Drink Industry Board, of which he is still a member.

Richardson was also a founding member of the UK Government Food and Drink Sector Council and served as a member of the UK Strategic Trade Advisory Group until January 2024.  

He is also a co-founder of the international collaboration Protein Challenge 2040, which aims to develop a sustainable global balance between protein production and consumption and is currently collaborating on a globally sustainable edible fats and oils initiative.

He sits on the Food & Drink Export Council and is a partner in supply chain consultancy, the European Food & Farming Partnership.

Richardson also chairs the UK Dairy Productivity initiative and contributes to Cambridge University’s Sustainability Programme for Sustainable Leadership.

Claire White-McKay

Job title: ​Food development manager

Company: ​Quorn

As a food development manager at Quorn, Claire White-McKay is a specialist in product development.

She previously worked for Mars Petcare in European and global roles, developing treats for dogs and cats for brands such as Pedigree, Dreamies and Temptations. Now at Quorn Foods, she is responsible for translating consumer wants and needs into measurable attributes and unpicking significant technical complexity in order to deliver meat-free food products that delight and nourish consumers.

White-McKay is a hands-on leader and thrives on activity that demands resourcefulness, collaboration and the realisation of ideas that are ‘beyond imagination’.

Rod Addy

Job title:​ Director general

Company: ​Provision Trade Federation

Rod Addy spent 20 years in the trade press, cutting his teeth as an award-winning journalist helping to launch The Grocer online in the middle of the 2001 foot and mouth crisis. Over his writing career, he covered all aspects of the supply chain, from the Horsemeat Scandal to the impact of Brexit and the pandemic.

Now, as head of the PTF he has vaulted the fence to bring his skills to bear on supporting the industry, advising it on political and regulatory issues and lobbying government on its behalf.

Jon Poole

Job title: ​​Independent consultant

Company: ​​Step Change

Jon Poole is an independent consultant focusing on organisational and development with a particular focus on leadership competency and development and career development. Until recently, he was chief executive of the IFST, the independent professional membership body for all those involved in technical roles in the food sector.

Alongside Step Change, Poole chairs SALSA, the third-party supplier assurance scheme for small and micro businesses in the UK. He has also written and published three books on leadership, business coaching and career development and now writes ‘The Talent Poole’ monthly column for Food Manufacture, exploring leadership as it applies in the food and drink sector.

David Lloyd

Job title: ​Senior R&D manager

Company: ​Huel

Dr David Lloyd is senior R&D manager of Huel, a UK based food company that makes a variety of nutritionally complete, plant-based meal products.

As Huel has expanded rapidly in employees, sales revenue and scientific capability over its eight-year lifespan, Lloyd has played a key role on that journey over the last four years. He is now co-ordinating Huel’s longer-term R&D strategy to drive further growth and help Huel move up another gear. Key interests include process optimisation, solving formulation challenges and exploring emerging ingredient technologies.

Both a passionate scientist and engineer, Lloyd – while still in the relatively early stages of his career – has had a somewhat varied experience across industry and academia.

Graduating from Loughborough university with a degree in chemical engineering, his passion for food and willingness to learn took him in a different direction. After studying an engineering doctorate in formulation engineering at the University of Birmingham, Lloyd took a role at Unilever, carrying out R&D innovation projects on ice cream and ready-to-drink iced tea. Looking for a new challenge brought him into the early stages of the rapidly growing Huel business looking after its ready-to-drink category before a switch to his current role.

Lloyd was also involved in the Institute of Chemical Engineers, promoting food and drink careers to future cohorts of engineering students. He has also won multiple accolades for presentations, business delivery and was awarded Food & Drink Scientist of the Year 2022 by the Food & Drink Federation.

Mathew Thewlis

Job title: ​Operations director

Company: ​Yeo Valley

As operations director for Yeo Valley, Mathew Thewlis is responsible for working with the team to set and deliver upon the product fulfilment strategy, helping Yeo to fulfil its purpose of nurturing and nourishing people and planet. This includes continuing to develop and grow the business in dairy and to widen the brand offer in new food categories starting with the recent launch of its soups.  

Based in the South West, Yeo Valley is a privately owned business with 20% ownership held in an EBT for the benefit of the circa 1,600 co-owners who work within the business. It operates five manufacturing sites and a finished goods distribution centre.

Yeo Valley manufactures a substantial amount of yogurt for own label customers, making its total market share approximately 30% of all yogurt in the UK. 

Thewlis’ experience includes a variety of food operations; 17 years in ambient drinks with Britvic, culminating in running its operations in Ireland; fresh produce with Mack (part of the Fresca Group) providing sourcing, selection, ripening and packing of fruits for a number of the UK’s leading multiples; and airline catering with Gate Gourmet providing meal preparation, packing and final mile fulfilment to aircraft across the major airports in UK and Ireland.

He is also a fellow of the IMechE with his foundation in mechanical engineering as a graduate from Loughborough University.

Lisa Fox

Job title:​ ​Group learning development manager

Company:​ Nomad Foods

Lisa Fox is a senior leader in learning and development with over 20 years’ experience in operational performance, talent progression and optimising people and performance. She has worked within corporate functions and latterly in manufacturing, helping people to reach their true potential.

With specialisms in leadership development, coaching, mentoring and high performing teams, her skills and talent enable organisations to flourish, embrace a learning culture and to create a workforce fit for the future and for generations to come.

David Moore

Job title: ​Head of ESG

Company: ​The Compleat Food Group

David Moore is the The Compleat Food Group’s first group head of ESG, having previously worked as senior technical manager for Winterbotham Dairy (now part of the newly formed The Compleat Food Group).

He has over 20 years of experience working in the food production industry, with previous roles including senior business development manager at Oritain; and head of technical supply base at New England Seafood. He also spent more than eight years at Sainsbury’s in various technical roles.

In his current position, Moore leads on the development and delivery of The Compleat Food Group’s new ESG strategy, as it seeks to create great quality, tasty food in a sustainable way that delivers a positive impact on the world.

Mark Schubert

Job title: ​Director

Company: ​Coriolis Consulting

Mark Schubert was appointed as managing director for Coriolis in April 2014, with 16 years of global consulting experience. As in any consultancy the deployment of talent is the cornerstone of our ability to service our clients. He believes that in order to succeed, consultants must demonstrate more than proven methodologies. A truly effective consultant will possess a blend of advocacy skills and technical skills; compelling cases delivered with conviction and result in success. Every act is an opportunity to encourage each other to learn more, do more and become more.

Schubert believes the true art of consulting is simplifying the “perceived” ​complexities. He takes a hands-on approach to ensure that the company’s values are at the centre of its delivery, and typically leads due diligence and diagnostic phases of work.

Chris Gilbert-Wood

Job title: ​Consultant

Company: ​Self-employed

Chris Gilbert-Wood is a food technologist who has worked in the food industry for 40 years. His roles have included positions at Marks and Spencer, Flamingo Horticulture and 2 Sisters Food Group. He was also previously a non-executive director at Quality Meat Scotland and the Ethical Trading Initiative.

Gilbert-Wood is a Registered Food Safety Principal and now works as a consultant. He is also a fellow and trustee of the IFST and chair of its External Affairs Committee.

Mark Baggaley

Job title: ​Operations director

Company: ​Butcher’s Pet Care

Mark Baggaley has worked in the food industry just shy of 20 years. His experience stretches across a range of roles, from shop floor all the way up to board room level.

He values honest, integrity authentic leadership where communication, engagement and empathy play a major part in driving a high-performance culture.

His career in food started at Carlsberg in 2005 at the Tetley brewery site in Leeds town centre. He began as a trainee master brewer and after passing his brewing exams, moved into overseeing the installation of a new £23m canning and bottling line at the Leeds Brewery. He then assumed the role of operations manager, before becoming the UK lean manager, where he helped develop and deploy both the Northampton and Leeds sites Lean/CI strategy.

Baggaley went on to study a post-grad masters at Leeds University in manufacturing excellence and joined Arla in 2011, where he worked out of the Settle Creamery as deputy site director.  

After 18 Months, he joined Stourton Dairy where he worked initially as head of lean and CI before becoming the site’s production technology development manager. In this position, he had full accountability for running Stourton Dairy and Creamery. In 2016, Baggaley joined Greencore, where he assumed the role of general manager for the Selby site.

Two years on and he was appointed as Greencore’s UK head for strategic projects, where he led the reshaping programme of the manufacturing footprint in the UK following the sale of the USA business. Then, in 2019, he joined McCormick as site director of the Littleborough factory.

His current role is operations director at Butcher Petcare, where he is responsible for the UK operations and its people, along with building and executing the operation’s footprint and plans to deliver the businesses’ three-year growth plans. His position is part of the exec team that sits on the board.

Mehdi Adjiri

Job title: ​Technical controller

Company:​ Graze

Originally from France, Mehdi Adjiri graduated with a MSc in food science in 2005. He emigrated to the UK in 2006, where he started a career in the food industry as part of the Bakkavor technical graduate scheme.

He has worked in various roles in manufacturing, from quality auditor to quality manager and technical manager. Spending almost nine years working at Marks and Spencer managing suppliers in the UK and abroad, Mehdi has an in-depth understanding of food retail.

Over his 17-year career, he has also covered a wide range of product categories, across chilled and ambient and managing product areas worth up £250 million.

He currently leads the technical function at Graze in his role as technical controller.

Jaclyn Bowen

Job title: ​Executive director

Company: ​Clean Label Project

Jaclyn Bowen MPH, MS is a food safety and quality systems engineer and executive director of Clean Label Project, a US-based national non-profit and consumer advocacy organisation with the mission to bring truth and transparency to food and consumer product labelling.

Through data, science, and benchmarking, the Clean Label Project uses retail sampling and testing to benchmark product quality and purity of bestselling food and consumer products and award Clean Label Project's coveted evidence-based Purity Award. 

Bowen was the researcher and co-author behind the largest academic peer-reviewed study ever conducted on lead and cadmium in baby food and infant formula, which was published in the international multidisciplinary journal, Science of the Total Environment. The capstone of her career (to date) was presenting before the 63rd session of the United Nations Commission on Narcotics in Vienna, Austria on Clean Label Project's study on the levels of industrial and environmental contaminants in cannabis products in 2020.

Before coming to Clean Label Project, she held numerous technical, standards development, food safety, quality, and executive roles within the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre, and NSF International. Her expertise is in organic, gluten-free, non-GMO labelling, food safety, and label claim substantiation and compliance. Bowen holds a bachelor of science in environmental biology, a master of science in quality engineering, and a master of public health in management and policy.

Konstantina Karagkika

Job title: ​Senior scientific and regulatory affairs manager

Company: ​Coca-Cola

Konstantina Karagkika is a senior scientific and regulatory affairs (SRA) manager for the Coca-Cola Company. In her current role, Karagkika is leading regulatory advocacy initiatives for GB&I that remove barriers and enable business growth, while engaging and collaborating with relevant trade associations and external stakeholders.

She is also responsible in managing regulatory compliance initiatives that support innovation and provide scientific advice and expertise towards our innovation pipeline. At the same time, she’s a key member of the European SRA Community, working closely and collaboratively with the SRA network to deliver the companies objectives at a local and European level.

Karagkika previously worked at innocent Drinks where she was heading the food regulatory, safety and emerging risks function.

Prior to this, she held a number of technical roles in several food businesses, ranging from ready meals, to nuts and specialty ingredients. She has gained broad experience in supply chain, technical operations and suppliers auditing on a global scale. Karagkika holds a master’s degree in food safety and quality assurance from the University of Reading, UK.

Bethan Grylls

Job title: ​Editor

Company: ​William Reed – Food Manufacture

Bethan Grylls is the editor of Food Manufacture, which commands the largest audience of any online platform dedicated solely to readers working in the UK food and drink manufacturing industry.

Prior to joining Food Manufacture (part of the William Reed group), she led a content team at Russell Publishing and has been focused in food and beverage b2b for six years.

She has been working as a professional writer for more than a decade and was responsible for organising one of the world’s largest virtual, scientific food and beverage conferences in 2021.

Grylls is a regular speaker at food and drink events and chairs Food Manufacture’s esteemed Business Leaders Forum, she is also the host for the brand’s prestigious food and drink awards, and a well-respected thought-leader in her field. She serves as a technical advisor on the Clean Label Project’s UK board and was a judge for Ecotrophelia 2023.

William Dodds

Job title: ​Deputy editor

Company: ​William Reed – Food Manufacture

William Dodds is the deputy editor of Food Manufacture, having join the company in June 2023.

Prior to coming on board as the brand’s deputy editor, he worked as the editor for Zag Daily, a B2B title focused on the sustainable mobility industry. He remains interested in shared mobility in addition to the plant-based food category.

Dodds studied politics at the London School of Economics and has a PGCE in secondary geography.

Gwen Ridler

Job title: ​Multimedia reporter

Company: ​William Reed – Food Manufacture

Gwen Ridler has been working with Food Manufacture since 2016, contributing her skills in writing, video editing, audio production and social media.

She joined William Reed mere months before the UK made the historic decision to leave the EU and has travelled with the industry as it has been forced to navigate the impact of Brexit.

This journey has allowed her to ‘peek behind the curtain’ of food production and experience some of the world’s biggest socio-economic events – the war in Ukraine, COVID-19 – from the perspective of the people striving to keep the nation fed against all odds.

While Ridler regularly writes news and features for the Food Manufacture website, her main passions are the multimedia projects she is involved in, including the new podcast series started in February 2023.

To find out more and to enter the Food Manufacture Awards, visit: www.foodmanawards.co.uk​​​.

Entries will close on the 23 September 2024.

This event is kindly supported by headline sponsor and business and accountancy firm, Menzies​​, and event sponsors Niras​​ - a multi-disciplinary engineering consultancy - Quor Systems​​ - software management experts and providers, and Watermill Press - a BRCIOP Food Packaging approved label convertor.