South Australia brands have come out on top at the 2024 Australian Charcuterie Excellence Awards (ACEA), clinching top honours in four major categories.
The competition – held at Sydney’s Shangri-La Hotel – was fierce, with more than 800 entries spread across 35 categories, demonstrating a wide array of traditional and specialty smallgoods, from classic ham and bacon to more niche products like duck terrine and wagyu bresaola.
Barossa Fine Foods and three other SA brands solidifying the state’s reputation as a leader in the smallgoods industry.
Barossa Fine Foods, operating out of Edinburgh North, was recognised for its Duck Terrine in the Pate & Terrines category and its Roasted Meatloaf in the Specialty Meats category.
Mike’s Beef Jerky and Specialty Meats from Robe also captured judges’ hearts, winning in both the Kranski with its Chilli Cheese Kransky and the Jerky category with its Chilli flavoured Beef Jerky.
Wintulichs Smallgoods from Gawler South won for its Double Smoked Slicing Ham in the Meat Products for Slicing category.
Skara Smallgoods in Totness, secured the Prosciutto category with its exceptional prosciutto, which is always a distinguished favourite.
Australian Meat Industry Council’s (AMIC) National Smallgoods Council Chair and head judge, Franz Knoll, was impressed by the competition standard this year, with 17 entrants not losing a single point in the judging process.
“Rather than building up points to be named a winner, the expectation is that you make a great product, and then there are deductions from that perfect score,” he says.
“We as judges invest so much time into critiquing each product, so we can identify areas where producers can improve. Overall, that leads to the standard being improved every year.”
Renowned chef from Sydney and one of the award’s judges, Adam Moore, said “it was great to see entrants using foundational recipes, and then being really creative by adding in native ingredients, or ingredients not normally seen in the charcuterie world.”
The awards night not only celebrated the winners but showcased the breadth and diversity of Australian-made smallgoods.
“In Australia, we have some amazing artisans and producers that are creating phenomenal products,” Moore added, emphasizing the sensory experience provided by these refined charcuterie items.
Oliver Stankovski, AMIC’s General Manager of Smallgoods, shared that the winners from this year will have the opportunity to compete on a global stage at the IFFA, a leading international trade fair for the meat and protein industry to be held in Frankfurt in 2025.
“Our award-winning products are a strong symbol of Australian excellence and innovation,” he said.
The awards continues into its third year of elevating Australian smallgoods, make sure to keep an out for the ACEA medal on packaging as a sign of quality and superior craftsmanship.
For further details about the Australian Charcuterie Excellence Awards, please visit the official website.
