Newport Boasts Food Success Story At Lloyds TSB Central Jewel Awards - Shelim Hussain MBE nominated for Retail Food & Franchise Excellence Jewel Award -   Nominated for the Retail Food & Franchise Excellence Jewel Award at the fifth annual Lloyds TSB Central Jewel Awards, is Newport, Wales based Chairman of Euro Foods Group, Shelim Hussain. The winners will be announced at the prestigious awards ceremony, which celebrates the continued achievements of the leaders from the Asian business community, in both the public and private sector, on 14th July 2007at the NEC Hilton, Birmingham. Recognised for his outstanding ability to develop and implement retail and food ventures leading to multiple managed units across the UK, since finding a niche in the food market, and selling his first box of frozen prawns in January 1993, Shelim Hussain MBE has strived to make it his own and over the past 14 years, has worked tirelessly to make a name for himself as one of the most talented entrepreneurs in the UK. As Chairman of the Euro Foods Group he has become a respected businessman both within the Bangladeshi Community and also within the UK Business Community mainly due to his acute commercial acumen and sensitive approach to business. This has been recognised by numerous awards and honours, including an MBE for service to business in Wales. With the addition of factories in Bangladesh and the chicken processing plant in Newport, Eurofoods Group now employs around 2000 people - quite a significant achievement from someone who started selling prawns out of the back of his car! The awards reflect the growing influence of the Asian community on the UK's culture and economy and bolster the Midlands' reputation as a hub of Asian talent. There are an estimated 200,000 Asian firms in the UK, generating wealth at a rate three times the national average, many of whom are based in the Midlands. Lloyds TSB's sponsorship of the Jewel Awards is just one aspect of the bank's continuing involvement with the UK's fast growing Asian population, as an employer and a financial services provider. The Group has also developed a range of products and services catering for the community's unique financial needs. These include a range of Islamic banking services - and a tie up with India's second largest bank, ICICI Bank, to provide customers with free money transfers between the UK and India, as well as Rupee mortgages for Indian property purchases. Truett Tate, Group Executive Director, Wholesale & International Banking, Lloyds TSB, said: "The success story of Britain's Asian community continues to be unabated. Year after year, the shortlist for the Lloyds TSB Jewel Awards showcases an incredible array of talent and this year is no exception. "Through the Lloyds TSB Jewel Awards we want to demonstrate the achievements of the community across the public and private sector. But that is just the start. We have established ourselves as a bank that is dedicated to serving Britain's communities. Our Islamic financial products and our India Banking Service are just two examples of initiatives we have launched to cater for the needs of our increasingly diverse population." Seven Jewel awards will be announced on the evening for Business & Commerce Excellence, Entrepreneur Excellence, Healthcare & Education Excellence, Professional Excellence, Public Service Excellence, Retail Food & Franchise Excellence, and the coveted Lifetime Achievement Jewel Award. Each nomination has been profiled and vetted to form an elite shortlist. The Lloyds TSB Central Jewel Awards are one of three glittering award ceremonies celebrating and congratulating the achievements of the movers and shakers of UK Asian enterprise, with the final event, Lloyds TSB Southern Jewel Awards, taking place on 15th September 2007 at Hilton Park Lane, London. Nominations for this year's Lloyds TSB Southern Jewel Awards are still open and can be made via a dedicated website: www.jewelawards.tv