A host of worthy global winners were celebrated at this year’s World Confectionery Conference event, as talents from finished products, equipment and ingredients markets were honoured, reports Neill Barston.

The event in London on Thursday, attracted a broad audience representing the full value chain of our combined industries, with our annual showcase focused on sustainability, innovation and business resilience sought to recognise achievements from the past 12 months. 

This year’s winners included an accolade for the Belgian-founded Godiva premium brand in the best finished product category, with its Signature milk chocolate batons (below), released to coincide with the company’s centenary, which has seen parent company devise a high-profile campaign supported with key adverts and accompanying limited edition products.

The finished product category attracted plenty of interest, with several companies gaining highly commended honours, including Mauii-based chocolate business, Wow Wee, UK gummy business Wild Thingz, and Scotland’s Arbroath Tablet Company.

Our annual accolades have very much been created to celebrate the best of talents across our industries, and supporting newly-emerging enterprises has been a valuable element of that.

On that note, Welsh-based couple Robin and Rosie Evans, from Bala, who are both trained pastry chefs, have moved into chocolate production and established a thriving confectionery business, Epicurean Chocolatiers, supplying within its local region, and are busy devising plans to scale-up their business.

Epicurean Chocolatiers were named Emerging Enterprise of the Year.

For the highly-commended spot in this category, British confectionery firm, Win-Win, which has been developing a cocoa alternative chocolate series over the past few years, was also recognised has having strong potential within the sector – and indeed remains a former award-winner at our event, having gained honours at our debut live event in Brussels held back in 2022.

Another particularly strongly contested category was our sustainability initiative of the year. This was awarded by our independent editorial panel working across the event, to the ZRO Group (pictured main image), for its newly-initiated programme of seeking to upcycle food-grade surplus material across the sector – which has already been successfully proved with its Choc Nibbles brand.

Judges also awarded a high commended rating for sustainable packaging business, Lactips, for its latest industry solution saving further waste within the sector.

Equipment accolade
Machinery remains another significant aspect of our accolades, with this category attracting a wealth of major industry names operating within the confectionery world. This category went to Rochdale-based BCH, which has well over a century of engineering history in the UK, with one of its latest lines, its six-colour mixing system judged to have offered a genuine innovation for the industry.

Judges also praised Netherlands-based business, Tanis Confectionery, which gained highly commended recognition at the event for its joint entry with Aasted machinery.

Within the ingredients category, fellow Netherlands company, Royal Avebe, emerged successful, as its PerfectaGel fast-drying portfolio introduces two new potato starch technologies that accelerate setting and drying while delivering a soft, elastic texture closer to gelatin.

Sarah Pope, of Royal Avebe, receives the Ingredients of the year award at our World Confectionery Conference.

There was also notable praise for ofi ingredients, which gained highly commended honours for its deZaan, ofi’s premium cocoa brand, delivering a fresh series of single origin cocoa liquors. In addition, the category also attracted another highly commended for the UK’s Plamil Foods, for its latest series of chocolate ingredients.

Finally, our Team of the Year honours also attracted plenty of interest from across the industry this year.  

Judges confirmed that ZDS, the German central college of the confectionery sector, emerged as a clear winner, with organisation continuing celebrations for its 75th anniversary of developing young engineering and technical prospects for the wider confectionery industry and beyond.

Notably, there were also Highly commending placings for British businesses, DT&G Ltd equipment, as well as Hames Chocolates, for their respective efforts within the region’s manufacturing industry.

Editor Neill Barston commented: “This year’s  World Confectionery Conference was packed full of surprises in London, with lots of fresh innovations, policy developments, and creative and dynamic initiatives that have proved both worthy award winners, as well as great topics for our presentations, as well as our concluding QandA.

“The latter drew plenty of interest in discussing major subjects of the moment including the impact of AI and wider technology, as well as the rise of EUDR deforestation legislation and related corporate due diligence frameworks that will impact the wider sector from the end of this year.

“All-in-all, this year’s event proved a high quality, and engaging industry showcase, and the winners of this year’s awards very much reflect a sector that remains in strong health, despite numerous tests that have continued to make their mark on the sector in terms of environmental, logistic and supply chain challenges.”

• Read our full review of this year’s World Confectionery Conference in our next edition of Confectionery Production