The news this week is about the Guild of Fine Food‘s Golden Fork nominees for various Great Taste 2026 products from the four nations of the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland), along with Spain, Greece, Italy, the rest of Europe and the rest of the world, have been released.

The contest had 15,038 entries from more than 3,917 companies across 116 countries, and these have been narrowed down to just 33 Golden Fork nominees that are set to compete for the top prize.

On 15 September, the trade will gather in central London in order to witness the live judging session for the Supreme Champion this year, from all of the products, at the awards dinner and ceremony.

I note that the bulk of the different categories have at least one dairy product in their segment. Out of the 33 product nominees, at least 11 of the top nominees are affiliated with dairy. This ranges from the Spanish selection, where the anchovies are in spicy butter, to the Northern Irish pork chops marinated in buttermilk, as well as delicious cheeses such as Cashel Blue Organic. Just marvellous.

It is all very exciting and a continuing celebration of what makes our industry great – the tasty, nutritious products that form the foundation of the dairy world. Dairy delivers and is found in so many places, both as a carrier, and a flavourful addition to various products that are regularly reaching the heights of the culinary world.

In other news, I used the excuse that we ran across Cheese Passion in Sevenoaks at the Bligh’s Market to buy nice bread and have cheese for dinner this weekend. I forgot how much I enjoy Taleggio PDO. Sometimes, dairy is the centrepiece of the meal and a very tasty one at that. (https://www.facebook.com/cheesepassionltd/)