Game awards launched to celebrate wild British produce
The Eat Game Awards, created by gun makers James Purdey & Sons, Boisdale Restaurants and Taste of Game, is set to embark on a national search to find the champions of British game and to reward their success, innovation and passion in working with this natural countryside harvest.
The awards website calls for members of the public to nominate their favourite game meat business, including pubs, or person until 28 February 2018.
Businesses and individuals can be nominated across 10 different categories:
- Best pub regularly serving game
- Best restaurant regularly serving game
- Best game chef regularly cooking game
- Best game farmers' market stall, including street food vendor
- Best added value game product
- Best multiple retailer selling game
- Best game butcher
- Game hero
- Champion of champions
After the nomination period has finished in February, the public will then be able to vote for the top 10 nominees from 1 June to 28 August 2018.
The individual or business with the most votes will win in each category.
Results night
The results will be announced at the Eat Game Awards dinner at Boisdale Canary Wharf, east London, on 9 October.
James Purdey & Sons founder James Horne said: “The consumption of game is a great joy to those that have enjoyed the spoils during the game season.
“We are determined to broaden the awareness of the delights this meat brings and encourage its wider consumption across the UK.
“The awards are a tremendous way of recognising the significant breadth of game use and innovation that so many ordinary people, chefs, restaurants and companies have brought to our table.”
Boisdale founder Ranald Macdonald said: “The eating of game is integral to the survival of the great British countryside, the rural economy and our way of life.
“It also delicious and nutritious. For everyone’s benefit we need to encourage the consumption of British game.”
Great businesses
The awards will reward and showcase great businesses that use game, according to Taste of Game founder Annette Woolcock.
She said: “We are very excited by the awards and hope the shooting and game meat industry will get behind them by nominating and voting for their favourite businesses and individuals.
“There are some great businesses now using game and we want to reward and showcase them through these awards.”
The awards are supported by a steering group, made up of experts from a cross section of the hospitality, retail, game meat and shooting worlds.
The nominated charity that the awards are supporting is The Country Food Trust, which aims to feed those in need with game meat casseroles, packaged in ready-to-eat long-life pouches.
