Media News South Africa

Galliova Awards announce 2017 finalists

The 2017 Galliova Award judges have revealed the names of the finalists in this year's Local is Lekker-themed awards and said that local food and health writers are embracing their heritage and forging their own sense of South African identity in their work.
Judges, Anna Montali and Dorah Sitole.
Judges, Anna Montali and Dorah Sitole.

The quality of the editorials was once again exceptionally high, with the judges specifically commenting on the calibre of visuals and styling across the board. With a new broiler category having been introduced this year, the judges agreed they would like to see more unusual dishes showcasing chicken in future entries.

Eight-time Galliova Awards judge, Dorah Sitole, says the awards constantly raise the bar in food and health writing, as evident in this year’s entries. “Every year the awards get more competitive, and it was great to see so many new names entering this year. The quality of both the visuals and styling was superb, although there was room for more ‘out the box’ thinking as far as the recipes were concerned. We also hope to see stronger entries in the new broiler category next year,” notes Sitole.

Long-standing Galliova judge, Anna Montali, says it was very encouraging to see local writers stamping their own identity onto their work. “The Local is Lekker theme came through very strongly, and it was great to see that writers are not simply following international trends anymore,” she says.

Reflecting these comments, Zola Nene, chef and cookbook author, notes “the quality of styling was fantastic”, while Marco Torsius, managing director of El-Azaar Poultry Farm in Bloemfontein and a member of the South African Poultry Association (Sapa) committee, feels there was scope for “more interesting” egg recipes.

Judging for their ninth year, Madeleine de Villiers (CPT), a nutritional consultant and registered dietitian in private practice, and Professor Marthinette Slabber Stretch (PTA), a registered dietitian and Emeritus Associate Professor of the University of the Free State, add that while the majority of entries from health writers where of very high standard, they hope more health writers will enter in future.

This year’s awards include Galliova Food Writer of the Year (magazines) (R25,000), Galliova Food Writer of the Year (newspapers and weekly titles) (R25,000), Health Writer of the Year (R15,000), Up and coming (Food or Health) Writer of the Year (R15,000), Galliova Egg Champion (R20,000) and Galliova Broiler Champion (R20,000).

The winners will be announced on Friday, 20 October 2017 at an awards ceremony to be held at Landtscap in Stellenbosch.

Galliova Awards 2017 finalists in alphabetical order:

Food Writer Magazines
Abigail Donnelly
Herman Lensing
Margie Els-Burger

Food Writer Weeklies & Newspapers
Esther Malan
Suzanne Crozier

Up & Coming Writer (Food/Health)
Claire Ferrandi
Liezl Vermeulen
Suzanne Crozier

Broiler Champion
Abigail Donnelly
Anna-Carolina Alberts
Margie Els-Burger

Egg Champion
Christa Swanepoel
Hannah Lewry
Justine Kiggen

Health Writer
Anna Rich
Glynis Horning
Salomé Delport

Let's do Biz