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This
year, the Great Taste Awards organised by the Guild of Fine Food, has
beaten all records having received in excess of 4,790 entries from
1,018 food producers. Such a high level only confirms that the
public's growing interest in regional and speciality food & drink
is driving producers to raise their game and produce food of the best
quality possible. More and more producers are looking to establish
the credentials of their foods through the Great Taste Awards 'Proven
Fine Food' principles. It also confirms the Great Taste Awards as the
country's largest and most important food accreditation programme.
Bob Farrand,
National Director of the Guild of Fine Food comments 'Clearly, the
robust and thorough judging standards of the Great Taste Awards
achieve a level producer's feel comfortable with. The increase in
entries tells us that the Great Taste Awards are undoubtedly the most
important benchmarking process for fine food & drink in the UK
and something the producer feels proud to be associated with. It
tastes and selects from the widest possible producer base and offers
consumers a far more authoritative and independent accreditation than
they will ever find in a supermarket own label brand.'
Food &
drink producers all around the country are eagerly awaiting the final
judging stages of this year's fine food 'Oscar's', the Great Taste
Awards. The one, two and three star gold awards will be judged on 1st
and 2nd July and will recognise some of the UK's most exquisite food
(all gold star winners will be announced late July 2008). After this,
the eagerly anticipated Supreme Panel judging is the fourth and final
round where the major trophy winners, including the Supreme Champion
2008 will be decided. All food & drink reaching this stage will
have undergone 3 intensive rounds of blind judging by different food
experts making it the most rigorous in the UK. The Supreme Champion
2008 will be announced at a glittering awards ceremony at
Kensington's Royal Garden Hotel on 8th September 2008.
Despite stiff
competition it was the humble pork pie that took the title of Supreme
Champion last year. A free-range pie of outstanding quality from
Walter Smith's, a family-run butchers based in Birmingham was
delighted to win the accolade. The impact on the company's business
has been little short of amazing: prior to winning, pork pie sales
formed under 0.5% of their turnover; today it exceeds 10%, proving
just how important it is for our judges to reach the correct decision.
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