Winners of the BBC Radio 4 Food and Farming Awards 2014 announced
BBC Radio 4 have revealed the winners of the Food and Farming Awards 2014.
The best and brightest of the food and farming industries were honoured earlier this month at an awards ceremony held in Bristol.
A couple of highlights
Cook of the Year Award
Jamie Oliver presented the prestigious Cook of the Year Award to Tony Mulgrew, a school chef from Halifax. Mulgrew was recognised for his culinary efforts to make the food served up in his high school the best it possibly can be, in addition to his endeavours to grow food in the school grounds.
Derek Cooper Lifetime Achievement Award
The Derek Cooper Lifetime Achievement Award was received by Tom Jaine, organiser of the Oxford Food Symposium and editor of The Good Food Guide. The judges said: “Tom’s knowledge and experience and the ability to cross the boundaries of history, culture, and gastronomy take him well beyond the status of an ordinary food critic, as an intellectual committed to bringing debates about food to the centre of public attention.”
Derek Cooper was the founding presenter of the Food Programme and a member of the first judging panel in 2000. He passed away aged 88 on 19th April 2014, and was honoured at the ceremony.
The Feeding the 5000 food waste charity was credited with The Best Initiative in British Food Award. Across their three campaigns – Feeding the 5000, Gleaning Network and The Pig Idea – they develop big ideas and take big action to change the supply chain in favour of low-waste food production and consumption.
Other winners
Best Local Food Retailer: Edge & Son Butchers (Wirral)
A fifth-generation family butchers that places great emphasis on animal welfare, rare breeds and provenance. The butchers have their own slaughterhouse, allowing them to work closely with farmers within a 25-mile radius of the shop. They also work with schools in the area, helping pupils to understand food production.
Best Food Producer: Gigha Halibut (Scotland)
Based on the Scottish island of Gigha, the team specialise in the artisan production of sustainable Scottish Atlantic halibut, which is smoked to order using oak chips made from whisky barrels from the Kilchoman Distillery on Islay.
Best Drinks Producer: Thornbridge (Derbyshire)
Highly influential in the UK’s craft beer movement, the Thornbridge brewery's first beers went on sale in February 2005 and it's gone on to develop IPAs and blonde beers, with the more recent addition of barrel-aged editions.
Outstanding Farmer of the Year: Neil Darwent (Frome)
Neil has been a dairy farmer since 1986 and set up Free Range Dairy in 2011. This is a UK farmer-led initiative to promote the value of milk from pasture, and has been building strategic partnerships with researchers and scientists to deliver new thinking and practical measures for dairy farmers.
Best Food Market: Aberystwyth Farmers Market (Aberystwyth)
Launched in May 2000, the market has up to 30 stalls on every first and third Saturday in the month. In 2010 the market was voted among the Top 10 Farmers’ Market in the UK by the Times – the only Welsh market to be included.
Best Street Food/Takeaway: The Pembrokeshire Beach Food Company (Pembrokeshire)
Combining ingredients foraged from the seashore with fresh local seafood, the Pembrokeshire Beach Food Company has five mobile Beach Shacks offering signature local dishes.
Food Personality of the Year: Cyrus Todiwala
A passionate advocate of British produce, and committed to education and training. His recent work includes The Incredible Spice Men for BBC Two in 2013, and a book, Mr Todiwala's Bombay: Recipes And Memories From India, published in October 2013.
BBC Radio Bristol Search for a Food Hero Award: Elizabeth Carruthers, Head of Redcliffe Children's Centre.
Elizabeth runs a food project for children under four.
Record breakers
The 2014 Awards saw a line-up of finalists from every part of the UK for the first time ever. The public response was also record-breaking, with the highest number of entries ever received.
Raymond Blanc, judge and award presenter at the event, said: “I don’t think you’ll find a list that features more inspirational people than this one – an amazing school cook who is changing so many young lives through food, right through to a team of young campaigners who’ve helped people all over the world understand the problem of food waste.
"These awards have also uncovered so many stories of great tasting food… producers, farmers, markets and retailers… all of them have made me feel excited about food in the UK… it makes me want to travel around the country and visit them all!”
Did one of your local suppliers or chefs end up on the list? Do you think you know a producer or supplier who you think is on par with these accolades? Let us know in the Comments below.
You might also like:
Comments
Be the first to comment
Do you want to comment on this article? You need to be signed in for this feature