Raymond Blanc OBE has honoured the chef, campaigner and TV presenter Jamie Oliver at the Food Made Good Awards for his “unrelenting passion and commitment” to use food as a force for good and improve the nation’s health.
The President of the Sustainable Restaurant Association (SRA) has presented Jamie with the Raymond Blanc Sustainability Hero award today at the Food Made Good Awards at the Royal Horticultural Society’s Lindley Hall in London.
Raymond Blanc said, “Whether Jamie is challenging school caterers head-on, here or in the USA, or throwing himself into campaigns with an unrelenting passion and commitment to persuade the nation to buy higher welfare chicken, he carries people with him, leading them to a better place.”
Jamie Oliver said, “Any award is a great honour and this one is extra special because it bears the name of one of my heroes. Raymond is an inspiration and I'm delighted to be able to call him a friend.”
Over 150,000 people signed Oliver’s petition calling on the Government to impose a tax on sugary drinks. The voluntary levy imposed by Oliver in his restaurants and others has raised more than £50k for health and educational causes since it was introduced in 2015 and just last week, the Chancellor announced he was introducing a tax on soft drinks from 2018.
The Raymond Blanc Sustainability Hero Award is one of 20 awards presented at the Food Made Good Awards, sponsored by Nestlé Professional, which recognise restaurants, cafes, pubs, bars, contract caterers, universities and hotels, who demonstrate that all food can be made delicious, ethical and sustainable.
Jamie has also presented the People’s Favourite Award to Lussmanns Fish & Grill. This award was voted for by the public and run in partnership with the Independent on Sunday.