The Oscars of the food and drink processing sector return for another year, with the awards open for 2026 entries.
The awards welcome all sizes and types of food and drink manufacturers - from ambient, to fresh, to frozen, to pet food - so long as they are based in or operate within the UK market.
Joining the 14-strong line-up is the brand-new Engineer of the Year award; an accolade celebrating the often-unsung heroes of food and drink production.
The deadline for 2026 entries is 29 September 2025 and a list of all categories can be found here.
Each entry will be assessed by an expert panel of judges, with finalists proceeding to a second interview stage held in the winter.
Here, we take the opportunity to get to know the judges better and find out about their current job roles and career achievements.
This year’s awards are supported by headline sponsor Menzies, and event sponsors Domino Printing Sciences, Reed, and Langdon.
To enter the awards, visit: www.foodmanawards.co.uk.
The judges
George Hughes-Davies
Job title: Founder
Company: Daily Dose
Earlier this year, Daily Dose took home both the title of Emerging Business of the Year and the champion of champions award, Manufacturer of the Year.
George Hughes-Davies, its founder, joins the judging panel for 2026 and will be helping to decide the winner for the grand prize.
Hughes-Davies founded Daily Dose in 2016 from his mum’s kitchen, and has since grown it into one of the UK’s fastest-growing beverage brands. Its mission is to make great tasting, high quality, sustainable juice accessible to everyone.
Today, Daily Dose is situated in Corby – a site it moved to about a year ago and which represents an £8 million investment (including the building and machinery).
Sarah Bradbury
Job title: CEO
Company: Institute of Grocery Distribution (IGD)
Sarah Bradbury brings over 25 years of unparalleled experience in the retail and food sectors. Currently, she leads IGD, an influential organisation that has been helping to inspire and unite the food industry for more than 120 years. IGD is a strategic insights and foresight business, reinvesting all profits into impactful initiatives that benefit both the industry and society at large.
Throughout her career, Sarah has held senior commercial and marketing positions, including her previous role as Group Quality Director at Tesco. There, she was responsible for overseeing the delivery of high-quality safe products, sustainability, agriculture and regulatory compliance. It was in this role that Sarah honed her passion for driving collaborative change, mobilising the food and consumer goods sectors as a force for good, and working to improve the food system for the long term.
Ash Stretton
Job title: Food regulatory affairs manager
Company: Marks & Spencer
Ash Stretton has been with M&S for nearly four years, looking after regulatory affairs. He has significant manufacturing experience across 15 years in technical and operations, working with the likes of Ferrero, Kraft Heinz, 2 Sisters Food Group, Hilton Foods, Moy Park, Griffith Foods, Humdinger Foods, Pernod Ricard, and Bradbury Cheese.
Stretton holds multiple degrees and post-graduate qualifications in different disciplines, including food law, business administration and agriculture, and food science.
He is a chartered scientist, registered food safety principle, chartered quality person, a fellow of RSPH, IFST and ILM, and a member of Chartered Quality Institute.
Barbara Bray
Job title: Food safety and nutrition consultant
Company: Alo Solutions Ltd
Barbara Bray MBE FIFST is a registered nutritionist and food safety consultant of African heritage.
Her work over the last 30 years has focused on delivering food safety in food supply chains and nutrition strategy for businesses, alongside leadership and educational roles in her public engagement activities.
She is currently researching diets to protect health of older adults at Queen’s University Belfast under the BBSRC funded Doctoral Research Programme to train PhD researchers in food systems.
In 2017, Bray was awarded a Nuffield Farming Scholarship to study international food and farming systems.
Her TEDx talk ‘What Youth can teach us about positive ageing’ looks at how we shape our food environment for the young and how we can adapt to better accommodate an ageing society.
She hosts the podcast ‘Women Positively Ageing’, the show for women in mid-life and older who want to live well for longer.
In 2019, she was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for her ‘Services to Food Nutrition’.
Alec Kyriakides
Job title: Independent food safety consultant
Company: Consultant
Alec Kyriakides is a food safety consultant with over 35 years experience in the industry. In his 28 years with the retailer Sainsbury’s, Alec managed safety, quality, supplier performance, technical training, serious incidents, customer complaints, analytical assurance and the in-house accredited laboratory.
Prior to Sainsbury’s, he worked in food manufacturing including the dairy and brewing industries. He is the co-author of books on the practical control of food borne pathogens including Salmonella, Listeria, C. botulinum, Campylobacter and E. coli.
Kyriakides is currently a non-executive board director of Campden BRI, a trustee of the IFST, and has sat on a number of influential industry and government committees. He is also chair of the Advisory Committee on the Microbiological Safety of Food, chair of the Safe to Trade Technical Standards Committee, chair of the FSA Root Cause Analysis Steering Committee, an honorary lecturer at Queen’s University Belfast, and former chair of the BRCGS International Advisory Board.
Mark Field
Job title: CEO
Company: Prof Consulting Group Ltd.
Mark Field boasts a wealth of experience in international fresh food manufacturing, having held senior technical roles at RWM Food Group (Part of Hilton Food Group) Moy Park under the ownership of OSI, and 2 Sisters Food Group.
Prior to this, he spent almost 10 years in Melbourne, Australia, heading the $9 billion private label business within Coles Supermarkets, Australia’s second largest grocery business.
Field then founded and launched the award winning food & drink consulting business, Prof Consulting Group in 2019 - which is now based in the UK.
With a team of international associates based in high growth global markets, Field supports investors, food manufacturers, retailers, export focused trade bodies, and QSR operators to identify and execute high growth strategies with a customers-focused lens.
John Prendergast
Job title: Retired
Company: N/A
John Prendergast spent his whole working life in a customer service role as a field service engineer, supervisor, manager/director.
Over the last 23 years, he has worked at senior management level at blue chip equipment suppliers and within the food processing industry across all protein groups, and primary and secondary processing.
Mark Baggaley
Job title: Group head of strategic transformation
Company: Hovis
Mark Baggaley has worked in the food industry for nearly two decades, with his experiencing stretching across a range of roles, from shop floor all the way up to board room level.
His career in food started at Carlsberg in 2005 at the Tetley brewery site in Leeds town centre. He began as a trainee master brewer and after passing his brewing exams, moved into overseeing the installation of a new £23m canning and bottling line at the Leeds Brewery. He then assumed the role of operations manager, before becoming the UK lean manager, where he helped develop and deploy both the Northampton and Leeds sites Lean/CI strategy.
Baggaley went on to study a post-grad masters at Leeds University in manufacturing excellence and joined Arla in 2011, where he worked out of the Settle Creamery as deputy site director.
Other experience includes Stourton Dairy, Greencore, McCormick and most recently, Butchers Petcare where he was responsible for the UK operations.
He is now group head of strategic transformation at Hovis.
David Moore
Job title: Group head of ESG
Company: The Compleat Food Group
David Moore has been group head of ESG at The Compleat Food Group since March 2022, having previously been in food technical roles at Winterbotham Darby, New England Seafood, and Sainsbury’s.
Moore has responsibility for all aspects of ESG across Compleat including sustainability, charity partnerships and stakeholder engagement.
He is also chair of the Chilled Foods Association, Sustainable Development Working Group, and the industry chair for the WRAP Target, Measure Act Working Group. He also represents Compleat on Defra’s Food Data Transparency Partnership and the IGD Food System Change Leaders Forum, as well as the IGD Technical Leaders Network.
Anthony Turner
Job title: Head of engineering
Company: Applied Manufacturing & Engineering Solutions Ltd.
Tony Turner is an experienced multi-site head of engineer, with a record of consistently delivering to the highest level within FMCG, food manufacturing and engineering management for over 25 years.
His career includes roles within Orchard House Foods, AM Fresh and Prepworld.
He is currently working as a project manager for Westfalia Fruit and offers independent support to manufacturers.
Andrew Hewston
Job title: Director
Company: Hewston Investment Holdings
Andrew Hewston is the former owner of Bumble Hole Foods, one of the UK’s leading manufacturers of egg products. Under Andrew’s leadership, the company grew from a small, regional supplier into the largest egg product manufacturer in England, known for its innovation and high-quality, value-added egg-based products.
His strategic vision and hands-on leadership played a pivotal role in expanding the company’s capabilities, product range, and national market presence.
In recognition of his contributions to the food manufacturing industry, Andrew was previously awarded with Business Leader of the Year, reflecting his commitment to excellence, sustainability, and innovation in food production. He now joins the judging panel to help select the 2026 winner.
His entrepreneurial journey culminated in the successful sale of Bumble Hole Foods to the Hardeman Egg Group in 2025, marking a significant milestone for the company and solidifying its place within the European market.
Hewston brings deep industry knowledge, a sharp business acumen, and an unwavering commitment to quality—qualities that make him a valued member of this year’s judging panel. His experience in growing a family-run business into a market leader gives him unique insight into the challenges and opportunities facing today’s food industry professionals. His contributions will be instrumental in recognising and rewarding excellence across the sector.
Katie Satterthwaite
Job title: Director
Company: Food Safety Excellence Ltd
Katie Satterthwaite is a co-founder and director of Food Safety Excellence Ltd, bringing nearly 20 years of experience in food safety, hygiene, and technical standards.
With a career spanning both regulatory and UK retailer spheres, Katie has built a reputation for delivering high-impact, pragmatic solutions that drive compliance and continuous improvement in food manufacturing environments.
Satterthwaite began her career in environmental health and has since held a variety of influential roles, most notably at Marks & Spencer, where she spent over a decade as factory standards manager. During her tenure, she led the development of M&S’s global food safety, integrity and animal welfare manufacturing standards, conducted hundreds of supplier audits across the globe, and provided critical support to resolve complex food safety and integrity issues.
She has contributed to national and international food safety guidance through membership of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) Food Safety Advisory Panel, the European Hygienic Engineering and Design Group (EHEDG), and Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) working groups.
As a consultant and trainer, Satterthwaite is known for her clear, engaging communication style and her ability to translate technical standards into practical actions for frontline teams. She works closely with food manufacturers and retailers to build robust systems that protect product integrity and consumer safety.
Craig Leadley
Job title: Chief executive
Company: Institute of Food Science & Technology (IFST)
Craig Leadley is a food technologist and seasoned food industry professional with over 30 years of experience spanning technical innovation, applied research, and strategic leadership.
Currently serving as chief executive of the IFST, Leadley is passionate about championing science and technology to drive healthier, more sustainable food systems.
Prior to joining IFST, he spent nearly three decades at Campden BRI, where he led teams in a diverse range of disciplines - from new processing technologies to product development, factory hygiene and agriculture. His work has consistently focused on delivering practical, near-market solutions for the food and drink sector.
Leadley has an active interest in all things ‘new technology’ for the food industry and has been involved in many industry/academic research collaborations in this field.
A published author and editor, he has contributed to numerous scientific papers and industry publications, and is a recognised voice in food technology circles. He is known for building strong partnerships across industry, academia, and government.
Rod Addy
Job title: Director general
Company: Provision Trade Federation (PTF)
Rod Addy spent 20 years in the trade press, cutting his teeth as an award-winning journalist and helping to launch The Grocer online in the midst of the 2001 foot and mouth crisis.
Over his writing career, he covered all aspects of the supply chain, from the horsemeat scandal to the impact of Brexit and the pandemic. He became editor first of Meat Trades Journal, then of Food Manufacture before moving onto become director general at the PTF in 2022.
In his current role, he advises on political and regulatory issues and lobbies the government on the industry’s behalf.
Alongside PTF, he is also the chairman of the Dairy Export Taskforce, which aims to promote sales of UK dairy products internationally.
Charlotte Langdon
Job title: Partner
Company: Menzies
As a partner at Menzies, Charlotte Langdon manages a diverse portfolio of privately owned and PE-backed clients, focusing on the manufacturing and construction industries, and serves as the head of the manufacturing sector.
Beyond audit and compliance, she provides proactive advice and commercial solutions to help clients navigate challenges.
Krisztian Nagy
Job title: Site director
Company: Arla Foods
Krisztian Nagy has been working in the food industry for almost 20 years.
He started his career on the shop floor then joined a production graduate programme at Moy Park. Nagy now works at Arla as its site director.
He holds an MBA from the University of Lincoln that helped to shape his people focused leadership style.
Richard Clothier
Job title: Managing Director
Company: Wyke Farms
Rich Clothier represents the third generation of the Clothiers, a family who have been making cheddar on their Somerset farm since 1861.
He has been managing director of the family business, Wyke Farms, since 2004. In that time, he has grown the company by more than 10% every year, as well as extending the availability of its award-winning cheddar to over 160 countries worldwide.
Today, Wyke Farms is recognised as one of the leading environmentally focused privately-owned UK food businesses.
The business has won a range of awards at previous Food Manufacture Excellence Awards ceremonies, including Dairy Company of the Year and the International Trade Award.
Clothier has also previously been named Personality of the Year and Business Leader of the Year at the FMEAs.
David Lloyd
Job title: Managing director and scientific consultant
Company: FoodSci Consulting Ltd
Dr David Lloyd is an award winning food scientist, chemical engineer and managing director of FoodSci Consulting Ltd.
He previously worked for Huel and Unilever solving technical product and process challenges in beverages, supplements and ice cream. He now helps entrepreneurs to develop, scale up and commercialise their product ideas.
Jon Poole
Job Title: Managing director
Company: Step Change Consultancy
Jon Poole has many years’ experience as a leadership and organisational development consultant, helping to develop bring out the very best in managers and leaders within the food sector and beyond.
Alongside his work with Step Change Development, Jon chairs SALSA, the third-party supplier assurance scheme for small and micro businesses.
He has also written and published three books on leadership, business coaching and career development, and contributed many articles for Food Manufacture’s ‘The Talent Poole’ column.
Alison Johnson
Job title: Managing director
Company: Food Forensics
Alison Johnson is the managing director and founder of Food Forensics, a UKAS accredited testing laboratory and solution provider.
After working for 15 years in the meat industry from farm to fork, Johnson identified a gap in the market and set up Food Forensics in 2012 to provide solutions for authenticity testing in food.
The business has developed into a leader in its field providing testing, insight, and intelligence solutions across the food sector to manage food risk and provide brand protection.
Amy Wilkinson
Job title: Leadership coach
Company: Fearless Foodies
Amy Wilkinson is the founder of Fearless Foodies and co-host of the award winning Oh for Food’s Sake Podcast, which helps foodies across manufacturing and retail with their personal and professional development.
Her own career spans 25 years in food manufacturing roles across multiple different functions, including NPD, marketing and commercial. Her mission is to make the food industry a happier place to work.
Richard Singleton
Job title: Finance and sustainability director
Company: Menzies
As the finance and sustainability director at Menzies, Richard Singleton helps clients design ESG strategies that enhance competitive advantage, increase top and bottom-line growth, improve stakeholder engagement, and create supply chain robustness, all while maintaining strong financial controls and performance.
Chris Gilbert-Wood
Job title: Director
Company: CGW Foodtech Ltd
Chris Gilbert-Wood is a highly experienced food technologist with more than 40 years in the food industry, spanning retail, manufacturing, and farming.
His career has focused on improving food systems from farm to fork through a practical and analytical approach, as well as calm and thoughtful leadership. He has worked with a wide range of stakeholders across the UK and internationally, including government bodies, NGOs, and industry partners.
He is currently president of the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST), where he is also a fellow. He is a registered food safety principal and a member of the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH).
Over the years, he has supported multi-disciplinary technical teams, contributed to industry boards and committees, and helped shape thinking around food safety, innovation, and sustainability.
Now semi-retired, Gilbert-Wood continues to contribute to the sector through CGW Foodtech Ltd, supporting projects where his experience can add value. He enjoys working with people, tackling interesting challenges, and remains a strong advocate for the role of food technology in driving innovation, continuous improvement, and resilience across the industry.
Phil Wright
Job title: Partner
Company: Menzies
Phil Wright is passionate about supporting growth-focused manufacturing companies navigate their financial journey - from start-ups to established manufacturers seeking greater efficiencies and strategic expansion.
He provides insight through data analysis, financial projections, and operational guidance tailored to the unique challenges of manufacturing operations.
Together with his team, he works as a genuine partner with businesses to understand what drives them, and couples this with the personal aspiration of the business owners to give joined-up practical advice.
Mathew Thewlis
Job title: Operations director
Company: Warbutons
Mat Thewlis recently joined Warbutons as part of the executive team and is responsible for leading the extensive operations across manufacturing and distribution providing the finest quality bakery products.
Warburtons will be celebrating 150 years in 2026 and Mat is honoured to have the opportunity to help support the family to continue the successful growth of the business with innovation in new class leading products.
Thewlis has nearly 30 years of leadership experience in food manufacturing across multiple categories, including dairy, airline catering, fresh produce and soft drinks.
His experience includes a variety of food operations; 17 years in ambient drinks with Britvic, culminating in running its operations in Ireland; fresh produce with Mack (part of the Fresca Group) providing sourcing, selection, ripening and packing of fruits for a number of the UK’s leading multiples; and airline catering with Gate Gourmet providing meal preparation, packing and final mile fulfilment to aircraft across the major airports in UK and Ireland. He was most recently operations director at Yeo Valley.
Ramona Hazan
Job title: Founder
Company: Ramona’s
Ramona Hazan grew up in a Mediterranean family where food was about celebration with colourful, aromatic dishes passed around during the hubbub of eating.
Unable to find the same familiar, comforting foods in the UK she decided to bring the Levantine textures and flavours to the UK market herself.
Hazan has a passion for food but her continual dedication and persistence to deliver a brand that stands out from the crowd and that people love has resulted in listings in most major supermarkets in the UK.
What first started 20 years ago in her small home kitchen (with an even smaller blender) has now grown to the business you see today in a much larger kitchen (with many, many blenders) specialising in houmous and falafel, based on her family’s traditional recipes with a contemporary twist.
Today, RAMONA’S Heavenly Houmous is the UK’s No.1 Houmous brand, winning many prestigious awards and driving new shoppers to the category.
Andy Richardson
Job title: Partner
Company: European Food and Farming Partnerships (EFFP)
Andy Richardson MBE was educated at Magdalen College School followed by an honours degree in agriculture. He joined BOCM Paul in 1989, where he held several commercial role.
In 2000, he joined Volac, the dynamic UK dairy nutrition business, becoming director of corporate affairs and sustainability before leaving in February 2023.
Since then, he has been a partner at EFFP, the supply chain consultancy, and was appointed chair of healthy ready-meal company Frive in June 2025.
He has been member of a number of influential government advisory groups, including the Food and Drink Council, and chair of Food & Drink Wales. He was awarded an MBE for his services to the food and drink industry in July 2025.
Corrine Toyn
Job title: Founder
Company: Chickpea Marketing
Corrine Toyn is a registered dietitian and founder of Chickpea Marketing, a marketing and nutrition consultancy on a mission to grow healthy food, drink and wellness brands.
She has worked in the food and drink industry for over seven years within marketing and scientific communications, previously working for companies including Abbott, M&S, and Benecol.
She utilises her dietetic insight to help brands connect with health-conscious consumers and champion evidence-based nutrition through the power of marketing.
Toyn is also passionate about raising the profile of dietitians and nutritionists working in the food and drink industry and set up the British Dietetic Association Industry Specialist Group in 2018.
Bethan Grylls
Job title: Editor
Company: Food Manufacture - William Reed Ltd
Bethan Grylls has been working as a professional writer for more than a decade, with b2b having been her focus since 2016 and food and drink specifically since 2019.
As the editor of Food Manufacture, she leads on the content strategy and is responsible for the delivery of the annual Food Manufacture Excellence Awards and Business Leaders’ Forum events, as well as hosting the popular Food Manufacture podcast.
She is a regular spokesperson at industry events and appeared on Channel’s 5 documentary Cadbury’s at Easter in 2024.
Michelle Perrett
Job Title: Freelance Journalist
Company: N/A
Michelle Perrett is a freelance journalist with a wide range of experience in the food and drink sector.
As well as writing for Food Manufacture, she has worked at titles including The Grocer, and pub trade bible The Morning Advertiser.
Alongside stepping in as a judge for the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards, she is also judge for The Great British Pub Awards and The Publican Awards.
Don’t miss out, enter the awards here: www.foodmanawards.co.uk.
