By Margaret Henderson, Vice President, Sunbelt Shows, Inc.

2010 proved to be another record-setting year for the Scovies including many new and exciting products!  Thanks to our outstanding panel of more than 80 judges, we were able get everything tasted and scored.  Now that the results are in, here are some highlights.

This year we added a Barbecue Division to the contest to include products that were not hot and spicy.  The division was well received with entries in the traditional barbecue sauce categories but also condiments, such as meat sauces, table seasonings and mustard; and a cook-it-up division that included rubs, marinades, and dip mixes.  Our All-Natural category continued to be incredibly popular.  The Salsa, Mild/Medium category had the most entries again this year with Habanero Hot Sauces coming in a close second.

Sugar & Spice Sweet Sauce from
Pleasant Valley Kitchen Company

Congratulations go out to our Grand Prize winner in the Tasting Division:Pleasant Valley Kitchen Company of Altamont, NY for their Sugar & Spice Sweet Sauce entered in the Hot Sauce, Habanero category.  The Grand Prize winner for the Advertising & Marketing Division was Toluca Gourmet for their Toluca Gourmet Salsa Casera which was entered in the Product Packaging category.

Toluca Gourmet Packaging–The Bottle is Clear and the Copy is Printed on the Bottle

Garden Fresh Salsa once again took home the largest number of Scovies this year with a total of 24 wins in a variety of categories including the Fresh Salsa, Prepared Dips, Queso Dip, Chips, and Salad Dressings.  There were several other companies that took home multiple wins this year including Bay Valley Foods and Pace Foods each with eight wins; B Gourmet with seven wins; Flaming Joe’s and Oregon Trail Jerky with five wins each; and Kingston-Miami Trading Company, Pepper Creek Farm, Porky’s Gourmet, Sticky Fingers and Top Secret Gourmet each had four wins.

A special thanks to Denice Skrepcinski, who once again this year managed to prepare more than 100 cook-it-up entries to manufacturer’s specifications and still make it look easy!

Congratulations to all our winners!  Many of the winning products will also be available at the sold out 2010 National Fiery Foods & Barbecue Show March 5-7 at the Sandia Casino & Resort in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  For complete contact information on all winning products visit our website here.