NI Food and Drink Still has Great Taste…
Northern Ireland-based food and drink companies picked up an astonishing 148 awards at the 30th annual Great Taste Awards announced on Tuesday 1st August. This year seven local companies picked up 10 coveted three-Star awards, 45 two-stars and 93 one-star awards.
Hannan Meats of Moira, the twice former supreme champion of the Great Taste Awards continued its successful run picking up three Stars each for its Koji and Buttermilk Pork Chop products.
Other local recipients of three stars included Morelli’s Ice Cream for Pistachio Swirl and Clotted Cream with Irish Black Butter ice creams, Baronscourt Estate for Wild Sika Venison Loin and Venison French Rack, William Grant & Co for its Guanciale, Mauds for its pistachio ice cream and Ballyboley Dexters for its Ballyboley Pedigree Dexter 28-day dry aged on the Bone Rump Steak.
More than 14,000 food and drink products from 109 countries were assessed by 500 industry experts over the course of 89 judging days in London and Dorset, and only 1.8 per cent of them were awarded three stars. Although administered in the UK, by the Guild of Fine Food, products made anywhere in the world can be entered for these awards, which the organisers say are the largest global accreditation scheme for food and drink.
7 NI companies have won *** Stars for 10 products including:
- Hannan Meats x 2: Koji Pork Chop & Buttermilk Pork Chop
- Morellis Ice Cream x 2: Pistachio Swirl Ice Cream & Clotted Cream with Irish Black Butter Ice Cream
- Baronscourt Estate x 2 : Wild Sika Venison French Rack & Wild Sike Venison Loin
- William Grant & Co x 1 : Grant’s Guanciale
- Mauds Ice Cream x 1: Pistachio Ice Cream
- Whitewater Brewing Co x 1 : Whitewater/Hinch Irish Whisky Barrel Aged Stout.
- Ballyboley Dexters x 1: Ballyboley Pedigree Dexter 28-day Dry Aged on the Bone Rump Steak
John Farrand, managing director at the Guild of Fine Food comments: “A huge congratulations to the Northern Irish producers who have been awarded Great Taste stars for 2023 with their outstanding food and drink.
What is Great Taste?
Recognised as a stamp of excellence and actively sought out by food lovers and retailers alike, Great Taste, organised by the Guild of Fine Food, values taste above all else. All products in the line-up for judging are blind-tasted: every product is removed from its packaging so it cannot be identified, before entering a robust, layered judging process.
New for this year and to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Great Taste, the Guild of Fine Food offered 50 micro producers the chance to put one new product in front of its expert panel of Great Taste judges for free. The bursary was aimed at micro producers who have never entered Great Taste before or have a new product, which has never been entered before. The bursary panel, which consisted of Adrian Boswell, buyer at Selfridges, industry commentator and food entrepreneur Mallika Basu, and PR & marketing expert AJ Sharp, selected the 50 most eligible entries.
2023 saw 21 products entered through the bursary scheme win a Great Taste award including Karobi’s Ghee from Karobi’s (3-star), New Alt from Antur Brew Co. (3-star), Shoogle Junniperous Scottish Navy Strength Gin from Shoogle Spirits (2-star) and Traditional Napa Cabbage Kimchi from The Ferm (1-star).
Food & Drink Wales is the headline sponsor of Great Taste 2023. Great Taste Golden Fork trophy sponsors include: Andrew Ingredients, Bord Bia, Food & Drink Wales, Invest NI, Italian Trade Agency, Maltby & Greek, Mevalco, Partridges, Scotland Food and Drink, ShireFoods, and Speciality and Fine Food Fair. Great Taste is supported by Henderson Group, Horgans, and Peter Green Chilled.
The Great Taste 2023 judging panel:
“When I come across a product with the iconic black and gold Great Taste logo, I see it as a badge of honour and feel compelled to purchase it. Having knowledge of the effort required to attain such a rating and the exceptional flavour that accompanies it, I am confident the product will not disappoint.” said a regular of the Great Taste judging panel.
The distinguished judging panel consisting of over 500 food & drink experts, included chefs, critics, recipe developers, buyers, journalists, retailers, broadcasters, and reputable industry professionals. The Great Taste 2023 judging line-up included senior buyers and coordinators from Selfridges, Whole Foods Market, Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, Waitrose and Westmorland Family. MasterChef 2022 winner Eddie Scott, olive oil sommelier and author Irini Tzortzoglou, food writer and owner of Violet Cakes Claire Ptak, co-founder of Island Social Club Marie Mitchell, chef turned farmer Julius Roberts, pastry chef and author Ravneet Gill, restaurateur Amy Poon from Poon’s, baker and author Kitty Tait - the youngest and newest judge to join this year. Finally, broadcasters and journalists Andy Clarke and Juliet Sear (ITV), Felicity Cloake (The Guardian) and Xanthe Clay (Telegraph) were involved this year, among many others.
What happens now?
These Great Taste award-winners can now proudly display the iconic black and gold Great Taste logo as a badge of honour on their award-winning products. The logo states whether the product was awarded 1-, 2- or 3- stars and that it was awarded in 2023, so make sure to look out for them in your local stockist!
Past winners have stated that displaying a Great Taste sticker has increased sales by as much as 50%, as consumers from around the world are enthused to taste the best food and drink products available each year.
Great Taste Golden Fork ceremony
The excitement of Great Taste 2023 doesn’t stop here, for the highest scoring winners it’s just the beginning. All 3-star winning products were tasted and judged again by the knowledgeable judging panel to crown the Golden Fork trophy winners and the 2023 Supreme Champion – the highest accolade of all.
The Golden Fork ceremony celebrates the best of the best from producers around the world, awarding them with a Golden Fork trophy. Further Golden Fork trophies are given for various categories, including the Guild of Fine Food Lifetime Achievement award, the Great Taste Startisan of the Year award and Nigel Barden’s Heritage Award.
All will be announced at the Great Taste Golden Fork Ceremony on Monday 11 September 2023 at the Battersea Arts Centre (trade event only).
For the full list of this year’s winners and where to buy them, head to www.greattasteawards.co.uk where you will also find a wide range of the award-winning products available to buy in delis, farm shops and independent retail outlets across the country