Entries now open for the coveted Food Drink Devon Awards

Following the resounding success of last year’s awards, the highly anticipated 2025 Food Drink Devon Awards are now open for entries. Recognised as the gold standard for excellence, the accolades shine a spotlight on the very best that Devon has to offer, honouring the county’s most talented, passionate and respected artisan food and drink producers, as well as its outstanding hospitality and retail establishments.  Applications are open to both Food Drink Devon members and non-members and close on Monday 31st March 2025.  The winners will be revealed at the prestigious awards’ ceremony on Monday 6th October.

Category awards this year include the 'Producer Awards' with the ‘Food Product of the Year’ and ‘Drink Product of the Year' as well as the ‘Best New Food’ and ‘Best New Drink’ product award, all guaranteed to be fiercely contested.  Celebrating wines grown, produced and bottled in the county, the ‘Devon Wine of the Year’ will once again be open for entries after its hugely popular launch last year.

The 'Retail Awards' include categories for 'Best Large Retailer’, ‘Best Small Retailer’ and ‘Best Online Retailer’, while the sought-after ‘Hospitality Awards’ cover ‘Chef of the Year’, ‘Best Fine Dining Restaurant’, ‘Best Restaurant’, ‘Best Hotel Restaurant’, ‘Best Pub’, ‘Best Café’ and ‘Best Takeaway or Street Food’ plus ‘Best Training School’ and the hugely popular, ‘Sustainability Pioneer Award’.  New for 2025 in the ‘Hospitality Awards’ is the ‘Best Bar’ award, created to champion Devon’s drinks led bars. 

Every entrant into the awards will have the chance to win a bronze, silver, gold or platinum award.  Platinum awards represent a perfect score of 100%, gold awards recognise scores of 90-99%, silver 80-89% and bronze 70-79%. 

Greg Parsons, chair of Food Drink Devon, comments on the awards: “Over the past 13 years, the Food Drink Devon Awards has continued to grow and thrive and its success reflects the incredible passion and dedication within our region for producing outstanding food and drink. We’re proud that our awards celebrate the producers, retailers and hospitality establishments who are making a real difference in the county, nationwide and also internationally to the food and drink sector.”

2024 saw the Food Drink Devon Awards receive the highest number of entries to date with a sell-out black tie awards ceremony attended by over 450 guests.  Judging for the awards is carried out by a panel of independent and unbiased experts including a number of celebrated names from the region.  Judging is conducted blind with all product labels obscured and hospitality and retail judging taking place anonymously.  After a rigorous and considered judging process, all results are verified by an independent adjudicator, entrants then receive their full feedback report at no extra cost providing valuable and constructive information which entrants can use to help their business grow. 

Greg adds: “I’m also thrilled to announce Food Drink Devon will be launching its first consumer awards later this year.  Voted for by the general public, the awards will give people the chance to vote for their favourite hospitality venue, community project as well as food and drink products.”

Food Drink Devon is committed to increasing the county’s profile, both nationally and internationally and represents a membership of Devon's leading food and drink producers, retailers, hospitality venues and related businesses dedicated to serving up the best produce from the county.  With a focus on quality, sustainability and provenance, Food Drink Devon’s aim is to support and promote their members and raise Devon’s culinary profile as a whole.  Look out for their green heart logo which is carried by over 380 producers and businesses across Devon.  

For further information about the awards visit https://members.fooddrinkdevon.co.uk/awards/, on Food Drink Devon visitwww.fooddrinkdevon.co.uk, follow @FoodDrinkDevon on X, Facebook and Instagram or contact Ali at Food Drink Devon on ali@fooddrinkdevon.co.uk.

Photo: 2024 Food Drink Devon Award Winners. Credit: Steve Haywood.