Kermarée and Vilsund Blue were awarded the top prizes in the 14th annual Seafood Prix d’Elite new products competition at Seafood Expo Global, the world’s largest and most prestigious seafood event. The winners were selected from a field of 34 finalists and were announced Tuesday evening.
Kermarée of Blainville-sur-Mer, France, won the best new retail product with Coffret Plateau de Fruits de Mer, a convenient kit with four varieties of fresh cooked shellfish that allow the consumer to easily create a shellfish platter at home.
Langoustines, shrimp, crab claws and whelks are packed in individual trays and then stacked in a cardboard carton with two display windows. The judges liked the quality and freshness of the seafood, as well as the package design.
In the foodservice category, the top prize was awarded to Vilsund Blue of Nykøbing, Denmark, for its Mussel Powder, a flavoring powder made of wild, sustainable blue mussels caught in Denmark’s Limfjord.
Produced with no additives, the powder can be used to enhance the taste of seafood dishes and sauces, and also with poultry, meat and vegetables. The judges noted the product’s wide variety of applications and the depth of flavor it provided.
Five special awards were also handed out: Kermarée’s Coffret Plateau de Fruits de Mer also won a special prize for health and nutrition. The naturally healthy shellfish presented in this product provide a good source of lean protein, are low in fat and offer a number of beneficial trace elements.
Marine Harvest VAP Europe from Brugge, Belgium, won a special award for convenience for its Salmon Filo Pastry Pie. This product is a multi-layer pastry cup filled with natural and smoked Atlantic salmon in a creamy white sauce, topped with grated Emmental cheese. Perfect for an appetizer or light meal, the product offers consumers an easy way to enjoy an elegant seafood preparation.
Paella 1-2-3 Delfin by Delfin Ultracongelados of Ontigola, Spain, was presented a special award for retail packaging. This easy-to-use paella kit provides all the ingredients to make a traditional seafood paella at home. Step-by-step directions in multiple languages are included on the package and product windows highlight both the quality of the ingredients and the ease of preparation. A QR code links to a video recipe of the dish.
The Big Prawn Company of Melton Constable, U.K., took home a special award for originality for its Double Dippers Prawn Cracker. This innovative snack product presents king prawns, sweet chili sauce and prawn crackers separately in a three-compartment tray. An enclosed spork helps consumers “double dip” the prawns, first in the sauce and then in the crushed crackers. The result is a spicy, crunchy seafood snack.
Lastly, The Big Prawn Company also won the Seafood Prix d’Elite special award for seafood product line for the three-flavor Double Dippers line. In addition to the Prawn Cracker variety, the line also features Prawn Curry Club with king prawns, mild curry mayonnaise and crushed poppadoms; and Crayfish Carnivale with crayfish tails, chipotle salsa dip and crushed corn tortilla chips. The line is packed in clear plastic folding trays to show the product and facilitate the three-part eating process.
The winners of the 2014 Seafood Prix d’Elite were chosen from a field of 34 finalists representing 11 countries. The winners and finalists are on display at Hall 11, Stand 2501 at Seafood Expo Global and Seafood Processing Global, which through 8 May.
The judges for the 2014 Seafood Prix d’Elite new products competition were Juergen Pauly (chairman), fresh fish category manager with Globus in Germany; Gorka Azkona, head buyer of fresh fish for Grupo Eroski in Spain; Debby Verheyen, seafood product expert for Delhaize Supermarkets in Belgium; Thibault Faucon, supply chain manager for Sodexo in Luxemburg; Keith Stanley, executive chef with Harbour & Jones in the United Kingdom; Stefanie Anton, director, European quality center at McDonald’s Europe; and Isabelle Kergourlay, seafood buyer for Picard Surgelés in France.
Seafood Prix d’Elite finalists were judged on taste and overall eating experience, packaging, marketability, convenience, nutritional value and originality. The judges’ scores were verified by the accounting firm of Ernst & Young.
