The shortlist categories are divided into FOUR groups:

Excellence Categories – These categories look at achievements in our core areas of excellence and include everything from Covid-19 Response to Social Impact.

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Sector Excellence – These categories look at achievements within market sub-sectors and can include everything from notable business expansion through innovation to diversity and environmental initiatives.

Firms of the Year – These categories look at achievements by specific types of companies and include everything from new market entrants to finance and legal firms.

Deals of the Year – The most notable finance and M&A deals from the research period.

 

*Please note that we also have awards for individuals, the winners of which will be announced in our Awards Report alongside the other category winners

Excellence Categories

COVID-19 RESPONSE

  • General Mills
  • Kraft Heinz
  • Mademoiselle Desserts Group
  • Mars
  • McCain Foods
  • Nestle
  • Ornua Foods
  • Parmalat

DIVERSITY

  • A dozen cousins, Beanfields, Mason Dixie Foods
  • AddВ Psalt
  • Mondelez International
  • PepsiCo
  • Pladis
  • Unilever

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

  • Air Protein
  • Amazon
  • Chipotle
  • Danone
  • Fonterra, DairyNZ and Nestlé
  • Mondelez International
  • Nestle
  • PepsiCo
  • Smithfield Foods
  • Tyson Foods
  • Unilever
  • Upfield

INNOVATION

  • Aleph Farms
  • Fonterra, DairyNZ, Nestlé
  • Heck, Vertical Future
  • KFC
  • Mars
  • MeliBio
  • Mouth Off
  • Natural Machines
  • Nourished
  • Plant Heads
  • Unilever

PRODUCT LAUNCH

  • Eat Just
  • Fazer Group
  • Mars
  • Meadow Foods
  • Muller
  • Nature’s Fynd
  • Nestle
  • New Wave Foods
  • Perkier Foods
  • Plant Heads
  • Pulmuone
  • Premier Foods
  • Squeaky Bean

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

  • Air Protein
  • Aleph Farms, Mitsubishi Corporation
  • Annika Biosciences
  • Berry Gardens
  • Big Idea Ventures, Ashika Group
  • Calidad Pascual
  • Else Nutrition
  • Fonterra, DairyNZ and Nestlé
  • FoodID
  • Imagindairy
  • Mars
  • Mondelez International
  • Nanyang Technological University
  • Nestle
  • Pairwise
  • Rothamsted Research, University of Bristol
  • Scandi Standard
  • Singapore University of Technology and Design

SAFETY

  • Diversey
  • SOS Hygiene Technologies
  • Tyson Foods

SOCIAL IMPACT

  • AddВ Psalt
  • Aldi, The Co-op, Iceland, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose, Deliveroo, Kellogg, Kraft Heinz
  • Amazon
  • Cargill
  • Danone
  • Dole Asia Holdings
  • Food Teachers Centre Community
  • JBS
  • Jelly Drops
  • McCain Foods
  • Mission Ventures, Nombots, Lexi’s Treats, Rootles

Sector Excellence

BABY FOOD

  • Danone
  • Else Nutrition
  • Hero Group, Angelini Holding
  • Kraft Heinz
  • Mead Johnson
  • Nestle
  • Piccolo
  • Tiny Organics

BAKERY & CEREALS

  • AddВ Psalt
  • Dr. Oetker
  • General Mills
  • Grupo Bimbo
  • Kellogg’s
  • Lotus Bakeries
  • Mondelez
  • Nestle
  • Pladis
  • ReGrained
  • Schwan’s

CANNED, DRIED & FROZEN

  • Mars, Unilever
  • McCain Foods
  • Nomad Foods
  • The Live Green Co.
  • Tyson Foods
  • Unilever

CONDIMENTS, DRESSINGS, SAUCES & SPREADS

  • Kevin’s Natural Foods
  • McCormick & Co.
  • Post Holdings
  • Rubies in the Rubble

CONFECTIONERY

  • Darrell Lea
  • Ferrero
  • Freedom Confectionery
  • Grummies
  • Hershey
  • Mars
  • Mondelez International

DAIRY

  • Arla Foods
  • Danone
  • Fair Trade USA, Chobani
  • Firmenich, Novozymes
  • Fonterra
  • FrieslandCampina
  • Lactalis, Kraft Heinz
  • Morinaga Milk Industry Co
  • Synlait Milk
  • Yili

FRESH PRODUCE

  • AppHarvest
  • Berry Gardens
  • Crate to Plate, Vertical Future
  • Danone, Hungry Harvest
  • Dole Asia Holdings
  • Greencore
  • Misfits Market
  • Nestle

MEAT

  • Aleph Farms
  • BRF
  • Cargill
  • Conagra Brands
  • Cranswick, Moy Park
  • Eat Just, foodpanda
  • Future Meat Technologies
  • Hormel Health Labs
  • JBS
  • Marfrig
  • Minerva
  • The UK Cattle Sustainability Platform
  • Tyson Foods

PRIVATE LABEL

  • Beyond Meat, KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell
  • Cranswick
  • Hilton Food Group
  • Kroger
  • TruFood Manufacturing
  • Unilever, Burger King

SEAFOOD

  • BlueNalu
  • Morrisons
  • Premium Brands Holdings, Mi’Kmaq First Nations Coalition
  • Thai Union
  • The Bumble Bee Seafood Company
  • Wildtype

SNACKS

  • Ferrero
  • Jelly Drops
  • Kellogg
  • Mission Ventures, Nombots, Lexi’s Treats, Rootles
  • Mondelez International
  • Post Holdings, EverGrain
  • Squirrel Sisters

SPORTS NUTRITION

  • Arla Foods Ingredients
  • Glanbia
  • GoodSport
  • Nestlé Health Science
  • Post Holding
  • Science in Sport
  • Westomatic

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN – DAIRY ALTERNATIVES

  • Calidad Pascual
  • Danone
  • Higgidy
  • Meadow Foods
  • Nestle
  • NotCo
  • Oatly
  • The Urgent Company
  • Upfield

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN – MEAT ALTERNATIVES

  • Aleph Farms
  • Beyond Meat
  • Big Idea Ventures, Ashika Group
  • Century Pacific Food
  • Firmenich, Microsoft
  • Heura
  • Mission Barns
  • Novameat
  • Redefine Meat
  • Sophie’s Bionutrients
  • The Livekindly Co.

VEGETARIAN & VEGAN – SEAFOOD ALTERNATIVES

  • Good Catch
  • Hooked
  • Nestlé
  • New Wave Foods
  • Schouten

 

Firm of the Year

DISRUPTOR

  • Aleph Farms
  • Cocuus
  • FoodID
  • Future Meat Technologies
  • Milk Moovement
  • Mouth Off
  • Redefine Meat
  • Sayurbox

FINANCE

  • Bank of America
  • Citigroup
  • Credit Suisse Group
  • Evercore
  • Morgan Stanley
  • Rothschild & Co
  • Royal Bank of Canada
  • The Goldman Sachs Group
  • UBS Group

LEGAL

  • Allen & Overy
  • Baker & McKenzie
  • Davis Polk & Wardwell
  • Dentons
  • Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer
  • Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
  • Herbert Smith Freehills
  • Jones Day
  • Kirkland & Ellis
  • Shearman & Sterling
  • Simpson Thacher & Bartlett
  • Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom
  • Slaughter and May
  • Sullivan & Cromwell

NEWCOMER

  • Agwa
  • Ballurh
  • Born Simple
  • Nutrilees
  • Remilk
  • Tattooed Chef Inc.
  • VFC Food

PRIVATE EQUITY/VC

  • Apollo Global Management
  • Bain Capital
  • GGV Capital
  • KKR & Co
  • PAI Partners
  • The Carlyle Group
  • The Riverside Company
  • TPG Capital
  • Vestar Capital Partners
  • Warburg Pincus

SME

  • Caulipower
  • Comvita
  • EnWave
  • Finnebrogue
  • Good Good
  • Mash Direct
  • Piccolo
  • Rubies in the Rubble
  • Strong Roots
  • This

Deal of the Year

FINANCE

  • Amaggi
  • Beyond Meat
  • China Mengniu Dairy
  • Conagra Brands
  • Eat Just
  • Guoquan Shihui (Zhengzhou Panhua Food)
  • Kellogg’s
  • Monde Nissin
  • Oatly
  • Pilgrim’s Pride
  • Post Holdings
  • The Livekindly Collective
  • Yihai Kerry

M&A (Impact)

  • Bain Capital buys Valeo Foods
  • Collier Creek and Utz Quality Foods merge
  • Dole Food Co. and Total Produce merge
  • Freshways and Medina Dairy combine
  • Lactalis buys Kraft Heinz’s natural cheese business
  • Hormel Foods acquires Planters
  • Inspire Brands acquires Dunkin’
  • Mars acquires Kind North America
  • Mondelez International buys Chipita
  • Nestlé acquires The Bountiful Company
  • Pilgrim’s Pride acquires Kerry Group’s meats and meals business

M&A (Innovation)

  • Awakened Foods (Snacks, Bubba’s Fine Foods) merge
  • Barilla acquires stake in Pasta Evangelists
  • JBS acquires Vivera
  • Kalera acquires Vindara
  • KDV acquires Hak
  • LIVEINDLY Collective acquires The Dutch Weed Burger
  • Mondelez International buys Grenade
  • Nestlé acquires Aimmune Therapeutics
  • Newlat acquires Symington’s
  • Sonae acquires Gosh Food
  • Unilever buys Onnit