SCOTTISH producers are encouraged to enter the UK’s only organic food and drink awards.
Run by Soil Association Certification, the UK’s largest organic certification body, the Best of Organic Market (Boom) awards are a chance to celebrate the best of organic food and drink.
Demand for organic has been increasing rapidly, with organic sales growing consistently for the past seven years, according to Soil Association Certification’s Organic Market Report. Scotland has more than 500 organic producers and processors. At the Royal Highland Show in June 2018, the Cabinet Secretary, Fergus Ewing, quoting data produced by Kantar Worldpanel, revealed that the total spend on organic grocery in Scotland was up 5.4% from the previous year.
The Boom Awards, now in their third year, celebrate what’s currently happening in the market, as well as the innovators shaping the future of food and farming.
The awards are open to all organic producers and businesses across a wide range of categories. Food and drink categories, judged blind purely on taste and quality, include dairy, bakery, meat, fish and alcoholic drinks.
For Scottish organic businesses, an overall “best Scottish product” prize will be awarded. The category will be chosen from every Scottish product that enters the Boom awards and will be judged by a panel of expert judges from the organic industry, food writers, chefs and bloggers. Highland Spring, the first bottled water brand in the UK to have its catchment area certified as organic by Soil Association Certification, will sponsor the category.
Prizes are not just awarded for products found in the shops – organic businesses often do things differently and the Best of Organic Innovation award will recognise pioneering production processes, product innovation and social change makers. A further award will celebrate the organic businesses leading the way in developing new and environmentally sustainable packaging solutions.
Entries for the Boom awards close on February 28, with judging taking place between April 30 and May 3, ahead of an awards night on June 26.
Joining the Soil Association to celebrate the brightest organic businesses in the UK as 2019’s “Boombassador” is Thomasina Miers.
The Masterchef winner said: “I’m thrilled to be joining Soil Association Certification to celebrate the best that the organic market has to offer and I’m looking forward to seeing the people and businesses that are creating change within the food industry.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here