The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has announced the shortlist for the Food and Drink Federation Awards 2019, which take place on Thursday 19 September at The Royal Lancaster, London. The annual awards celebrate the diversity, dynamism, and dedication of those who work in the industry and ensure that food and drink is so widely enjoyed across the UK, and around the world.
This year saw a record number of entries with the shortlist for each category chosen by an expert panel of judges. Nominees include household names as well as new products and faces and this year’s award include a new category, Registered Nutritionist / Dietitian of the Year. Nutritionists and dietitians support our industry in improving the health of the nation and are crucial to innovative new product development. This new accolade will recognise an individual who has made an exceptional contribution to the food and drink sector in that field.
This prestigious event brings together around 500 guests to celebrate the success of the winners and the strength of the food and drink industry. Jay Rayner, British journalist, writer, broadcaster and celebrity restaurant critic, returns to host the ceremony.
The headline sponsor for the event is Santander, with menu and wine sponsored by Birds Eye Ltd and table plan sponsored by The Gap Partnership. This year’s category sponsors are IFST, RSSL, PepsiCo UK, Santander, and Sheffield Hallam University.
Ian Wright CBE, Chief Executive of the Food and Drink Federation, said:
“Congratulations to all the teams, individuals, and brands that were nominated for our Awards. The strength of our industry is its breadth and its boldness, each category will be hard fought. Despite the political uncertainty we face, our industry will continue to produce the high-quality and innovative goods for which we are known worldwide. Now more than ever, it is vital that we celebrate our success together. I look forward to toasting our shortlisted nominees in September.”
FDF Awards 2019 Shortlist
Apprentice of the Year: Sam Dagley – Weetabix; Abigail Davidson – Unilever UK & Ireland; Kyle Constable – OAL; Gareth Thompson – Premier Foods; Dennis Bell – BV Dairy; Millie Blackburn – ABP UK.
Brand Launch of the Year: The Meatless Farm Co; Pladis – Flipz, Premier Foods – Mr Kipling Unicorn Slices; Häagen-Dazs – Häagen-Dazs Mini-Cups Collection; Nature Valley – Nature Valley Nut Butter Cups; Samworth Brothers – Honest Crust; Britvic plc – Robinsons Fruit Creations and Robinsons Fruit Cordials.
Campaign of the Year: FareShare – Feed People First; Gosh! Food – The Gosh! Kindness Café; Birds Eye – Captain Birds Eye ‘Real Food. Simply Made’ campaign; Mr Kipling – Premier Foods – Mr Kipling & Roald Dahl’s Splendiferous Summer Partnership; Mondelēz International – Cadbury Inventor; apetito UK Ltd – Wiltshire Farm Foods Rebrand.
Community Partner: Loch Duart – Salmon Pool Community Fund; Valeo Foods UK – Rowse Hives for Lives; Coca-Cola Great Britain – ParkLives from Coca-Cola Great Britain; FareShare – Fight Hunger, Create Change; Bags of Taste – Bags of Taste, combating food poverty; Company Shop Group – Community Shop: Building Stronger Individuals and More Confident Communities.
Diet & Health: Kellogg’s – Kellogg’s Coco Pops Sugar Reduction; Britvic – A Healthier Everyday; McCain Foods (GB) Ltd – McCain Home Chips Lighter; Mondelēz International – Cadbury Dairy Milk 30% Less Sugar; Kerry Taste & Nutrition – Nutritional Optimisation in Beverage for our Foodservice customers through reformulation and NPD; Kellogg Company – W.K. Kellogg No Added Sugar Granolas.
Education Initiative: RSSL – Science Takes to the Road with RSSL; PepsiCo International – The PepsiCo Beaumont Park STEM Initiative; Coca-Cola European Partners – Coca-Cola European Partners and UK Youth’s ‘Reach Up’ programme; Nestlé UK & Ireland, Girvan factory – Nestlé Girvan educational biodiversity site; Warburtons Ltd – Discover Warburtons Wheat project.
Emerging Business (sponsored by RSSL): Yorica!; Techni-K; Kolibri Drinks; Bon Accord Soft Drinks; NEMI Teas; The Meatless Farm Co; Mr Lee’s Pure Foods Co.
Environmental Leadership: Raynor Foods Ltd – Rosemary Gardens – Sustainable Food Systems; The Bay Fish and Chips – The Bay Fish and Chips; WWF/Coca-Cola Foundation Partnership – WWF/Coca-Cola Foundation Partnership; Nestlé UK&I – Leveraging Environmental Sustainability Through Collaboration; pladis UK&I – #RoadtoZero; Tate & Lyle Sugars – From sugar cane to building bricks: turning a by-product into a sustainable ingredient for artisan bricks.
Exporter of the Year (sponsored by Santander): Ramsden International; Millennium Group; St Pierre Groupe Ltd; Belvoir Fruit Farms; Global Brands Ltd.; Mr Lee’s Pure Foods Co.
Food and Drink Engineer of the Year (sponsored by Sheffield Hallam University): Grahame Poole – British Sugar; Ryan Schouten – BV Dairy; Alexandra Agg – Mondelez International; Craig Moore – Siemens Digital Industries.
Food and Drink Scientist of the Year (sponsored by IFST): Carole Bingley – RSSL; Alexandra Johnstone – The Rowett Institute, University of Aberdeen and SEFARI Gateway; Steven Muir – Agrico UK Ltd; Durran Eden – Raynor Foods Ltd; Jacquie de Silva – Unilever UK & Ireland; Suzanne Davies – PepsiCo International; David Clark – KP Snacks.
HR Initiative: pladis UK&I – Positive minds; KP Snacks – Making mental health a priority at KP Snacks; Weetabix Food Company – Weetabix’s Induction Experience; Birds Eye UK – Birds Eye UK Commercial Capability programme; Unilever – Unilever Integrated Talent Strategy; Mondelēz International – BOOST Employee Wellbeing Programme; apetito UK Ltd – English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) Project.
Innovation: Made for Drink – Reclaim the pub for the local community via sublime snacks that pair perfectly with your favourite alcoholic tipples; RSSL and The Meatless Farm Co – Meat Free Mince – affordable, unique and lovingly made from plants; Garçon Wines – Sustainable, flat wine bottle and game-changing 10 Flat Bottle Case; Company Shop Group – Unlocking the full potential in surplus – commercially, socially and environmentally; Raynor Foods Ltd – Rosemary Gardens ¬our on-site hydroponic, vertical, self-contained farm; KP Snacks – IWS: Making tomorrow better than today at KP Snacks; Hawkshead Relish – Hawkshead Relish Company Black Garlic Range.
Registered Nutritionist / Dietitian of the Year: Meg Longworth – Chartwells, Compass UK&I; Lauren Woodley – Nomad Foods; James Collier – Huel; Hannah Theobald – pladis UK&I; Claire Baseley – Ella’s Kitchen; Caroline Page – Raynor Foods Ltd; Luise Kloster – Premier Foods.
Rising Star (sponsored by PepsiCo UK): James McComas – Birds Eye UK; Natalie Lee –Birds Eye; Rasan Chandra – British Sugar; Lydia Cordice – Mondelez International; Jessica Kelly – Premier Foods; Alexandra Agg – Mondelez International.
For more information visit http://www.fdf.org.uk/fdf-awards.aspx