"We are extremely pleased with the record number of entrants this year - especially because it is the competition's tenth consecutive year.
"The number of entrants has progressively grown year-after-year, and we could not be happier with the quality of produce that is submitted." she says.
In celebration of the competition's success, this year included a special presentation for the Producer of the Decade, received by Ellesmere Butchery in Canterbury.
The awards also included categories that reflect the evolving demands of local consumers. The innovative category asks for entrants to showcase something new, while the convenient category looks for a quick and easy weekday meal that can be cooked in under 20 minutes.
"The innovative category is one of my favourites, because it highlights just how versatile pork products are." Ms. Matthews says.
Those competing in bacon have the opportunity to present dishes that use up to five different types of bacon: middle, dry cured, shoulder, streaky and middle eye. While boneless ham is judged separately to in-bone leg ham.
Head judge and chef at Wellington's Brentwood Hotel, Glenn Curphey, says this year's standard was outstanding.
"There was a lot of craftsmanship and creativity displayed. The sheer number of entries tells us that there are a lot of people around the country who take a lot of pride in what they do and what they're selling."
The competition's judges were made up of food writers, meat experts, traders and chefs.
"We had a really nice mix of judges, across the board. It was quite a broad spectrum of opinions and ideas, which worked really well."
The NZQA qualified judge who has been involved in competitions both regionally and nationally, says it took a lot of thoughtful consideration to come to the final winners.
"We look at the textures, the mouth-feel, the taste, the colouring of the meat, the plating and presentation, the moisture content and the fat ratio."
"This year's standard was so high that we really struggled, but our supreme winners showcased some amazing food. By the final round, we had all agreed on who our winners would be."
Each category is judged by a panel of four judges in pairs, and the top scoring dishes are then put through to a second round to determine the medal placings.
From there, each category's winner is judged a final time to reach the three supreme winners.
Mr. Curphey says while the judging process was long, it was thoroughly enjoyable.
"It was particularly long for the streaky bacon judges who had over 40 entries to taste. So, it was really important to keep their palettes refreshed."
"There were a couple of flavourings used this year that I found really interesting. For example, chilli bacon and pepper crusted pork - we had to really think about how they achieved the end result because it was a blind tasting."
General Manager Sonya Matthews says NZ Pork was extremely pleased with this year's competition, and would like to thank all the entrants for the work they put into their entries.
"The awards are a great opportunity for our retailers and butchers to present the fantastic produce they sell, and showcase their skills in preparing and cooking New Zealand pork, bacon and ham.
"Our farmers work extremely hard to provide New Zealanders with quality pork products that are born and raised in New Zealand, so it is great to see retailers promote them in such a fantastic way." she says.
The awards were sponsored by Halley Labels, Pacific Flavours and Five Star Pork.
Full list of Pork, Bacon and Ham Awards winners
