The Superior Taste Award, organised by the Brussels-based International Taste and Quality Institute (iTQi)*, is an annual prize open to any food or drink product available on a retail basis..
A total of 60 food entries from 38 Taiwanese enterprises participated in the event, competing against 1,500 food items from more than 900 food suppliers around the world. They won 18 "three-star" prizes, given to "exceptional products" with scores of 90 or higher, 22 "two-star" awards for "remarkable products" and 11 "one-star" awards for "notable tasting products," according to the competition's organizers.
The Taiwanese prize winners held a flag of the Republic of China at the award ceremony and chanted: "Taiwan No. 1."
Chang San-wo, a tea farmer from Taiwan's Nantou County, who led Taiwan's delegation at the competition, said the number of tea products from Taiwan competing in the 2016 contest was double the number in 2015, and they won 10 three-star awards. Chang's "Highland Four Season Tea" was one of Taiwan's three-star winners.
Another tea farmer from Nantou, Lai Yung-fu, also earned a "three-star" award for his oolong tea. Nantou is well known for its tea production that benefits from the county's hilly terrain and good water quality, and Lai said he was grateful that his home county had such a good natural environment for growing tea.
Food processor Zhen He Food Co. was among the other Taiwanese award winners, taking three prizes for its crisp chili snacks. The company's head, Lee Chen-wei, said the snacks were simply a way of using up dried chilies left over from the production of kimchi, or pickled cabbage, and said winning international acclaim was really an unexpected surprise.
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The International Taste & Quality Institute (iTQi) based in Brussels is the world's leading organisation dedicated to testing and promoting superior food and drink products. Judges are selected from the 15 most prestigious European culinary and sommeliers associations: the Maîtres Cuisiniers de France, Academy of Culinary Arts, Hellenic Chefs' Association, Académie Culinaire de France, Verband der Köche Deutschlands, Federación de Asociaciones de Cocineros de España, Federerazione dei Cuochi Italiana, Årets Kock of Sweden, Euro-Toques, Gilde Van Nedrlandse Meesterkoks, Associação de Cozinheiros Profisionais de Portugal, Craft Guild of Chefs, Turkish Cooks Association, World Master Chefs Society (WMCS) and the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale (ASI).
The Superior Taste Award is a unique international recognition that is focused on the blind judgment of Chefs and Sommeliers.
By: N. Peter Kramer
