Food NW Awards 2009

Organised by Food Northwest, the NWDA cluster organisation set up to lead the food and drink industry and help grow the Northwest regional economy, the awards celebrate the successes of businesses across Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside.

They acknowledge companies from all areas of the industry, from farm to fork, including food retail and service, wholesale, distribution, food processing and agriculture.  This year, the awards include two new categories to recognise regional speciality food producers; ‘Fine Food Producer of the Year 2009’ and ‘Best New Northwest Speciality Product 2009’.

This year’s Food Northwest awards will focus on the theme ‘Inspiration and Innovation’ and will highlight the innovation and dedication of companies excelling in their sector, across the Northwest. The winners will be announced at a Gala Awards dinner, hosted by Lucy Meacock of ITN and Granada TV, on Thursday June 25, 2009, at Manchester’s Hilton Hotel. The awards’ dinner menu will be created to highlight the best of the region’s specialities by their leading Northwest chef, David Gale.

The awards programme has also been extended this year to include a special Fine Food Northwest event, including business clinics and networking for fine food producers. This will be hosted at the Hilton Hotel during the day of June 25, when the ten winners of the Fine Food Northwest Awards, will be presented with their awards. The winners of these awards will form the shortlist for the two new fine food categories in the overall Food Northwest Awards.

Entry to the Food Northwest Awards 2009 is free and businesses have the chance to submit applications in eleven categories.

Pat Foreman, chief executive of Food Northwest, said: “The awards celebrate the energy, enthusiasm, innovation and sheer hard work of companies large and small operating within the region. This year we are delighted to be working with the region’s fine food producers and have extended our awards programme to recognise and further support this dedicated group of businesses. This is the fourth annual awards programme  and as ever, we are anticipating high quality applications from world-class companies across the region.”

For further information or to book tickets for the Gala Dinner, visit www.foodnwawards.co.uk