The 2018 search for foodservice’s most innovative food and drink solutions has begun, with the highly prestigious UK Foodservice Quality Food Awards now open for entries.
Open to manufacturers and suppliers across foodservice, and with a variety of categories available, from grab and go to soups, pizza, pasta, party food, bakery items and beyond, there is an ideal fit for every product and every type of business, no matter the size or scale of operation.
The awards culminate in a glittering ceremony on the 27th September at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel, but not before each entry is put through its paces by an independent judging panel of development chefs, consultants, nutritionists and industry experts. Key judging criteria include: taste, flavour, texture, aroma, ingredients, innovation, packaging, presentation and price point.
Crucially, each entry receives constructive, actionable feedback even if an entered product does not end up winning. There is a lower small producer entry free, which is applicable for companies with fewer than 10 staff and annual sales under £2 million, meaning burgeoning start-ups can also feel the benefits of a big win.
Fresh soup supplier, The Real Soup Co. made it a clean sweep at the 2017 Foodservice Quality Food Awards with its newly introduced 380g Indonesian Chickpea and Coconut Soup winning both Best Meal Solution and an outright Gold in the foodservice category. On the win, Helen Marlton, Customer and Commercial Partnership Manager, said:
“The Q Award win was a real watershed moment for us and helped us unlock some key pieces of business, including an exclusivity deal to stock the cafés of one of the UK’s biggest and best loved high street retailers.”
Yossi Foods is a Bristol-based producer of authentic falafel to foodservice and retail; in 2017 the company won Gold Small Producer of the Year at the Q Awards. Director Rebecca Channack had this to say:
“The benefits have been invaluable to us as a young growing company – something we can proudly communicate to both existing and new business. One year along and we're still very much enjoying the fruits of the win, so a big thank you to the Q Awards!'
Helen Lyons, Publishing Director at the Foodservice Quality Food Awards, commented: “These stories of success have been a common feature of the Foodservice Quality Food Awards ever since we established them to sit alongside a prestigious and longstanding portfolio stretching back almost 40 years. Landing an award at the Foodservice Qs sends a clear signal to the industry – this is a product that has been scrutinised by some of the best in the business, something with a true point of difference that will get the right people – chefs, and those with purchasing power – to sit up and take notice.
“I urge anyone in foodservice that feels they are sitting on the next big innovation to enter it into the awards today – the Quality mark is a true badge of honour with benefits that are far-reaching.”
The UK foodservice Quality Food Awards are supported by headline sponsor Graphic Packaging International.
