A week of awards for Woolworths TASTE

Richard Eskinazi (Woolworths Food, home and beauty marketing executive), Maranda Engelbrecht (TASTE Consulting food editor) and Sumien Brink (TASTE Editor-in-Chief)

Engelbrecht won the prestigious Food Styling category for a series of food features that appear in each issue of TASTE entitled 'Food and Mood' and received the award at The Showroom - acclaimed chef Bruce Robertson's new restaurant. The Gourmet Voice Awards, held earlier this year at the Palais des Festivals in Cannes, honour the gourmet media from around the world (TV, publishing, press, radio and internet) who have made the biggest contribution to the promotion of the culinary arts and the appreciation of wine.

According to TASTE editor-in-chief Sumien Brink, of New Media, the jury that select the winners is made up of 20 top gourmet personalities including Jill Norman, internationally renowned cookbook publisher and food-writer from the United Kingdom. An additional five consumer representatives are also chosen to join the professional jury selectors.

The jury's voting is based on three main criteria, creativity of content, originality of approach and efficiency of presentation," says Brink. "Maranda won the award for a series of food features that appear in each issue of TASTE entitled 'Food and Mood' and we are extremely proud that she has won the top prize at these prestigious awards, less than a year after winning the golden Mondi Premier Award in the At Home category."

"In Food and Mood, my objective is to inspire and cross the boundaries a little," says Engelbrecht. "The recipes are simple, but the mix of flavours and the styling are new. The combination of talented photographers such as Gerda Genis and Micky Hoyle, and the clever copy and creative layout from the editorial team, add to the story's success. When the work is done, it brings pleasure to me and hopefully to the consumer - that's the essence of creativity!"

"From the outset TASTE has struck a chord with consumers and industry alike," says newly appointed publisher Jaco Scholtz. "Earlier this year TASTE recorded the highest percentage growth in the food and décor category and this followed, with a Mondi nomination for this year's awards, and our success in Cannes and the recent ADmag Awards, proves that our team has the winning recipe."