Entry Information
Entries must be submitted by Wednesday, 6 May and you do not have to be a member of Scotland Food & Drink to enter.
Cost
| Members (Applicable Tiers) | Standard |
| £50+VAT per entry | £80+VAT per entry |
We accept payment online at the time of entry. Award entry fees are non-refundable.
Businesses are welcome to submit more than one entry in any category (up to a maximum of three per category) however, each entry must be submitted separately.
With the exception of the Best for Scottish (Independent and Multiple Business of the Year) categories, any product or business which won a specific category in 2025 is not eligible to enter the same product in that category again in 2026. Businesses may still enter other categories or enter with different products.
Judges can only asses an entry based on the information provided on the entry form and supporting material (if applicable), so please complete your submission as fully and carefully as possible. Inaccuracies cannot be corrected once judging has taken place.
We reserve the right to reassign entries to a more appropriate category if deemed necessary, and to withdraw a category if an insufficient number of entries are received. Entrants will be notified of any changes.
All entries must be submitted online. If you have any difficulty, please contact events@foodanddrink.scot
Judging Process
Entries will be judged by an independent panel of industry experts. The judging panel is made up of decision-making buyers, influencers and chefs from across the food and drink sector. Bringing real commercial edge and years of industry experience over the years we have had some fantastic judges at The Excellence Awards.
In tasted categories all products are prepared for the judges by qualified chefs. Tasted products can be for either the food service or the retail market, and will be judged within the relevant context.
Judging Criteria
Our judges are looking for informative and well-planned answers. Entrants are solely responsible for the accuracy of the information they supply. Neither the organisers nor judges will have capacity to carry out additional research so entrants should ensure that all questions are answered.
Entries will be allocated points for their applications, weighted as follows:
Tasted Categories
Application form – 30%
Tasting Session – 70%
Business Categories
Application form – 100%
(Excluding Young Talent of the Year Award)
The judges' decision is final and feedback will be provided if requested.
