A free range pork sausage has picked up the top award and been named the very best in the grand final of the BPEX Foodservice Sausage of the Year competition 2014, which took place at Butchers’ Hall in London recently.
From more than 230 sausages entered, only 15 made it through to the final. There were three finalists in each category: Traditional Pork Sausage, Speciality Pork Sausage, Best Export Sausage, Best Innovative Pork Sausage and Best Hot Dog.
The winning sausage, which was entered into the ‘Traditional Pork Sausage’ category by Nuneaton-based Frank Parker Butchers, scored highly on taste, texture and appearance.
Elated with the company’s success, butcher George Parker, said:
“We have been making our free range sausage for around three and a half years and have worked hard to perfect the recipe. Available in restaurants and also sold in our butcher’s shop, it regularly receives great feedback on its flavour and texture so we hoped it would do well in the competition. To win the hotly contested Overall Champion title confirms that we are doing things right and that’s very reassuring.”
BPEX foodservice trade manager, Tony Goodger, said:
“The competition marks the starts this year’s British Sausage Week (3-9 November), which celebrates the nation’s love of the great British banger. The Week acts as a fantastic platform for butchers, farm shops, retailers and sausage-makers to promote quality pork sausages and highlight their quality assurance credentials to customers by using the Red Tractor logo (or an equivalent quality mark) where appropriate.”
The BPEX Foodservice Pork Sausage of the Year 2014 results
| OVERALL CHAMPION | Frank Parker Butchers | Free Range Pork Sausage |
| Category 1 – Traditional Pork Sausage Category | ||
| Winner | Frank Parker Butchers | Free Range Pork Sausage |
| Second Place | A Turner and Sons | Best of British |
| Third Place | Owen Taylor and Sons | Country Herb Special Sausage |
| Category 2 – Speciality Pork Sausage Category | ||
| Winner | York House Meat Products Ltd | Pork with Stilton, Onion, Chutney and Fresh Rocket |
| Second Place | A Turner and Sons | Dragons Fury Hot Chilli |
| Third Place | JC Rook and Sons Ltd | Pork, Chilli and Mango Sausage |
| Category 3 – Innovative Pork Sausage Category | ||
| Winner | Franconian Sausage Company | Hot Smoked Londoner Sausage |
| Second Place | Rothbury Family Butchers | The Three Kings Sausage |
| Third Place | Groovy Foods | The Sasquatch |
| Category 4 – Best Export Pork Sausage Category | ||
| Winner | Graham White & Co Ltd | Director’s Sausage |
| Second Place | Welsh Sausage Co Ltd | Pork Sausage |
| Third Place | Westaway Sausages Ltd | Old English Pork Sausage |
| Category 5 – Best Hot Dog Category | ||
| Winner | Broadoak Farm Sausage Company | Smoked Hot Dog |
| Second Place | Aubrey Allen | Maple Cured Gammon, Maple Syrup, Chipotle Chilli with Smoked Paprika and Fennel Hot Dog |
| Third Place | Tulip Ltd | Smokey Red Hot Dog |
BPEX represents pig levy payers in England and works to improve the competitiveness and efficiency of the English pig industry. BPEX is a division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board.
The Red Tractor Pork logo indicates the quality and country of origin of the pork, that it has been produced responsibly to rigorous standards, is traceable back to Red Tractor farms and independently inspected at every stage of production.