The very best regional food and drink products, producers and retail and hospitality establishments were honoured today (Tuesday, 1st November) at the prestigious final ceremony of the Taste of the West Awards 2011, sponsored by Waitrose.  Held at the Eden Project, Cornwall, in the Mediterranean Biome, the well known broadcaster, journalist and food and drink critic, Nigel Barden presented a total of 30 awards including the coveted Champion Product Award, 19 Best of Category product winners, Best New Product, Best Packaging and five South West Regional Hospitality and Retail awards. After a welcoming drinks reception, guests enjoyed a lunch of award-winning produce sourced entirely from the South West.

 A process spanning some eight months, each winner from today’s ceremony had already won a Gold award in either the Product Category (announced August 2011) and/or the Hospitality & Retail Category (announced October 2011).

 Also presented were the Award for Local Food in Schools and the Award for the Carol Trewin South West Producer of the Year.

 The Champion Product award went to Dartmoor Farmers of Devon for their Sirloin of Beef Roasting Joint. Judge Rick Stein said, “This product is exactly what West Country food should be all about. Outstanding flavour, beautifully well hung and clearly great expertise has gone into producing such a wonderful piece of meat.”

 Dartmoor Farmers were also the worthy winners in the tightly fought contest for the Carol Trewin South West Producer of the Year Award.

John Sheaves, Chief Executive of Taste of the West, said, “What has shone through this year in particular has been the standard of the winning products or establishments. Judge after judge has gone out of their way to tell me that their job had been made much harder this year. This is exactly the response that we were looking for during these difficult economic times. One thing will prevail in such competitive trading conditions and that’s excellence. It therefore bodes well for the region for the future and underlines our message that a food culture based on quality is a sustainable one. Well done to all the winners.”

The Dartmoor Farmers Association in Devon secured the Carol Trewin South West Producer of the Year Award, sponsored by Westpoint Arena and 2012 Devon County Show. The judges confirmed that choosing the winner of this category was particularly difficult due to the outstanding calibre of the finalists. On choosing Dartmoor Farmers, the judges said, “The winner provides us all with huge inspiration for what can be achieved and is a great innovative business model, with impressive reach and influence. They have far reaching goals and achievements – the benefits of which will be felt for years. They have worked together to solve what many have long thought was an insolvable problem – how to manage sustainably one of the region’s finest jewels of the countryside by adding value to their primary product. It was a cracking entry!”

The South West Local Food in Schools Award was established to recognise schools committed to serving healthy, local produce at lunchtime, to educating their pupils about the source of the food they eat and communicating the healthy eating and local sourcing messages both to pupils and parents.

The award was won by Cape Cornwall School in Penzance, Cornwall. “I feel that the overall programme undertaken at this year’s winning school has just raised the bar for others to aspire to,” said Roy Heath, formerly of The Cornwall Food Programme, who judged this category. “They are to be truly applauded for their school’s combined efforts and are a beacon to what can be achieved outside of the commercial spectre that seems to dampen many schools’ enthusiasm for good, honest food and its benefits.”

The title of South West Restaurant of the Year goes to Gidleigh Park in Chagford, Devon. With two Michelin starred chef Michael Caines MBE at its head, Gidleigh Park was voted Number One Restaurant in The Sunday Times Top 100 British Restaurants, while Condé Nast Johansens voted it ‘Most Excellent Restaurant’ in the 2011 Excellence Awards. We are delighted to say that Taste of the West agrees that this is the finest Restaurant in the South West in 2011. Indeed, the judge described it as “faultless”.

The title of South West Café/Tea Room of the Year Award, designed to recognise establishments providing excellence in food and hospitality during daytime meals, goes to The Kitchen Tearoom & Restaurant in Polperro, Cornwall. It was described by the judge as producing “local, fresh food at its very best” and being “a very good ambassador for the good food produced in this region.”

The Award for South West Local Retail Outlet of the Year went, for a record fourth year, to Washingpool Farm Shop near Bridport in Dorset, which was described by the judge as “very much on the ball and clearly looking to retain their title.”

Taste of the West is delighted to welcome Waitrose as title sponsor this year. Regional Product Manager, Tracey Marshall, commented, “Waitrose has established a strong partnership with Taste of the West through our shared commitment to supporting small producers throughout the region. The Taste of the West Awards is not only a great chance to discover even more of the best food and drink, it provides producers with a platform from which to raise their profile and grow their business. We already have excellent long-term relationships with many suppliers in the South West and, with the arrival of new stores in the West Country like Waitrose Exeter, our aim is to give opportunities to even more producers.”

Taste of the West Awards 2011

List of Winners by category

Today’s winners, listed here, represent the region’s very best in produce and those retail and hospitality sectors dedicated to serving the highest quality food and drink for South West residents and visitors alike to enjoy:

Each year, entry forms for the Taste of the West Awards, are sent to over 3,000 food and drink producers and over 4,000 hospitality and retail outlets across Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. The Awards are judged by a panel of industry experts, chefs, restaurateurs and technical specialists who have the difficult task of choosing the winners of the coveted Gold, Silver and Bronze Awards in each of the product classes and county winners in the hospitality categories. Overall category award winners are selected from the recipients of Gold awards and then announced at the ceremony.

For more information about the Taste of the West Awards, including full details of all Gold Silver and Bronze award winners, please visit www.tasteofthewest.co.uk.

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