Buckwells of Southsea ‘Mighty Steak Skewers’ gain Diamond Award
Buckwells Butchers in Southsea clinched a best of the best Diamond accolade in the Q Guild of Butchers 2020 Smithfield ‘Star’ Awards. The Osborne Road shop achieved a Diamond in the BBQ category, which was sponsored by Innovative Food Ingredients. Their ‘Mighty Steak Skewers’ coated in AVO Lafiness Black Garlic Marinade, first picked up a top-ranked 3*** rating.
The Winning ‘Mighty Steak Skewers’ with Black Garlic Marinade
Made using highly trimmed rump steak from the West Country with courgettes and red onion, coated with a AVO Lafiness Black Garlic Marinade, judges deemed it “a great product overall with attractive presentation, great balance of colour and a lovely BBQ smell. The steak was tender and the flavour subtle yet so tasty.”
Buckwell’s receive a glass trophy from sponsor Innovative Food Ingredients, along with a voucher for goods or services.
Buckwells of Southsea owner John Buckwell said: “Naturally, we’re over the moon to pick up a category-leading Diamond award in the face of such strong competition from our fellow butchers nationwide. I dedicate this success to our entire team.”
New Smithfield ‘Star’ Awards Rating System
For the first time this year, the revamped Smithfield ‘Star’ Awards had a brand-new star rating system through which 3***, 2** or 1* certificates were awarded to products achieving a set standard. Diamond awards are then achieved by pitching all the 3*** products against each other to find the ‘Category Champion’.
Despite tough competition, Buckwells received an impressive 11 product awards in total, 2 of which featured our best-selling AVO Lafiness Black Garlic Marinade. Their other entries were:
| Category | Product | Star Awards |
| Hot Steak Pie | Steak, Ale & Stilton Pie | 3*** |
| Game Ready Meal | Game Pie | 2** |
| BBQ Product | Black Garlic Lamb | 2** |
| Burger | Scotch Steak Burger | 2** |
| Innovative Sausage | Victorious Pork Sausage | 2** |
| Traditional Pork Sausage | Old Portsmouth Herb Sausage | 2** |
| Fresh Meat Display | Main Shop Window | 2** |
| BBQ Product | Mighty Chicken Skewers with Ginger, Lemon & Chilli | 1* |
| Burger | Venison Burger | 1* |
| Traditional Pork Pie | Pork Pie | 1* |
From 220 individual products entered from 29 Q Guild butchers across the length and breadth of the country, a total of 73 achieved 3***, 52 2** and 44 1*, They were judged blind by an independent panel of food and meat sector experts headed up by Institute of Meat Chief Executive Keith Fisher.
Showcasing Members’ Achievements and Outstanding Products
Butchers Q Guild General Manager Claire Holland said: “These awards are a great way of showcasing our members and their achievements. They work really hard to develop outstanding products and to keep up with consumer trends therefore to have it topped off with an industry judged accolade is the icing on the cake, for which they should be very proud.”
Black Garlic Samples and Recipe Ideas
Please get in touch for samples of Black Garlic and other AVO Lafiness Marinades. You can also download a copy of our Summer 2020 Recipe Book, containing 42 inspirational recipes.
