FMEA 2024: Who’s in the running?

Judging for next year’s Food Manufacture Excellence Awards (FMEA) began back in October, when more than 100 entries were submitted into the running.

A team of over 30 judges pulled together to read the entries and discuss who would proceed to the final.

Now, the judges have decided their finalists…

The judging process

Among some returning accolades, the FMEAs also welcomed in new categories for 2024, including the Community Award, the Innovation Award, ESG Excellence Award, Employer of the Year, and Factory Manager of the Year.

For five of the awards (listed below), there was a further level of judging. Upon successful completion of the written entries, these people-based accolades required the entrant to present in front of a panel in a Dragon’s Den format last week (13-17 November 2023).

Each candidate was given 10 minutes to present, with a 10-minute Q&A with the judges. From there and following the conclusion of all presentations, the judges reviewed the written entries in combination with the presentations to settle upon the finalists.

The awards which mandated interviews were as follows:

• Factory Manager of the Year
• Business Leader of the Year
• Employer of the Year
• Future Talent Award
• Food/Beverage Manufacturer of the Year

All other awards were judged based on written entries.

This event is proudly sponsored by our headliner Menzies, alongside event sponsors Quor, HSBC, and CAS Recruitment.

The 2024 Food Manufacture Excellence Finalists

The finalists for each category are as follows:

Business Leader of the Year

• Marc Burbidge - B3 Labs
• Andrew Hewston - Bumble Hole Foods
• Michelle Laithwaite - Fuel Hub

Read more about the Business Leader of the Year finalists...​​

Collaboration and Partnership Award

• DIGI Europe & The Refill Coalition
• Kingsmill Professional & Zest Food Partners
• Nestlé & First Milk

Read more about the Collaboration and Partnership Award finalists...​​

Emerging Business Award

• Fuel Hub
• Great Balls of Flour
• Little Bobby Jebb Foods

Read more about the finalists in the line-up for our Emerging Business Award...​​

Employer of the Year

• Arla Food UK
• Bumble Hole Foods
• Mondelez International
• Proper Cornish

Read more about the finalists for Employer of the Year...​​

ESG Excellence Award

• Arla Foods
• Dunbia
• Mindful Chef
• Moo Free

Read more about the ESG finalists here...​​

Factory Manager of the Year

• Kate Clawson - Sleaford Quality Foods
• Stephen Lane - Pro-Pak Foods
• Bernard McAuley - Pilgrims Food Masters
• Edward Poska - Princes
• Jarek Sadowski - The Compleat Food Group

Read more about our finalists in the running for Factory Manager of the Year...​​

Food Integrity Award

• B3 Labs
• Culture Compass
• Dunbia

Read more about the finalist line-up for the Food Integrity Award 2024...​​

Future Talent Award

• George Buckwell - The Compleat Food Group
• James Burch - Coca-Cola Europacific Partners
• Izzy Duignan - Nestlé UK and Ireland
• Mollie Harvey – Lincoln & York
• Calum Jones - Princes
• Rhian Smith - Princes

International Trade Award

• Plant-Ex Ingredients
• Prima Cheese
• Princes
• Regal Food Products Group
• Wyke Farms

Site Team of the Year

• Charlie Bigham's - London Kitchen
• Fuel Hub - Production Facility
• Moy Park - Dungannon
• Pilgrims Food Masters - Attleborough
• Princes - Long Sutton
• Solina UK Trading

Read more about the 2024 Site Team of the Year finalists...​​

Supply Chain Excellence Award

• Authenticate IS & The Compleat Food Group
• Pilgrim's UK
• The Collective Dairy

Read more about the Supply Chain Excellence Award finalists...​​

The Community Award

• Action Against Hunger - The Compleat Food Group
• Blue Dragon Children's Foundation & TNA Solutions
• One Feeds Two - Mindful Chef
• Project Surplus - Charlie Bigham's
• Work For Good & B1G1 - Fudge Kitchen

The Innovation Award

• Foodify - Foodify Innovation
• Innovative new sustainable products - BioPak
• Innovative plant-based breakfast drink - Earth'D Drinks
• Living Soda - FHIRST
• Mentos Paperbottle - Perfetti Van Melle
• Morro Nutri - Xampla
• Superloaf - Modern Baker

Food or Beverage Manufacturing Company of the Year

• Arla Foods
• Beechdean Dairies
• Bumble Hole Foods
• Hilltop
• Sleaford Quality Foods
• The Tracklement Company

The winners will be announced at the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards 2024, which will take place on Thursday 8 February at the London Hilton Bankside. Tickets are available to purchase, here.​​

All tickets to the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards include:

• Three-course dinner and champagne reception on arrival.
• Awards ceremony hosted by celebrity talent.
• After party, featuring dancing and entertainment.

We hope to see you there and best of luck to our finalists.