The New Zealand Vegan Sausage Awards
New Category Stars in Vegan Sausage Awards
Who doesn’t love a breakfast banger? A summer sausage sizzle?
In 2019 we brought you the first of our Awards to celebrate the humble vegan sausage. We had an amazing array of competitors from home and abroad, showcasing their sausages, hotdogs and sausage rolls. Our 2020 Awards were even more popular and our third and fourth awards in 2021 and 2022 once again produced some surprising winners!
New Category Stars in Vegan Sausage Awards
For the fifth annual Vegan Sausage Awards, taking place on 26th June, a new category of plant-based meat alternatives will be added to the usual sausage categories.
It is a delight to be able to increase the Sausage Award categories and showcase the many delicious plant-based pastrami and other deli meats made here in New Zealand.
Sausage and deli meat alternative makers from Aotearoa have entered this year’s awards. Our judges will have a hard time choosing the best bangers and delicious deli plant meats!
Jasbir “Jazz” Kaur, multi-award-winning executive chef & trainer, creator of the new series “Ignite the Chef in You” and President of the NZ Chef Association Auckland, will be working with Volker Marecek.
Marecek has been Cordis Auckland’s Executive Chef since 2009 and manages a brigade of over 60 chefs. Jazz and Volker will be helping celebrity judge, vegan comedian Tom Sainsbury, to navigate the tastes and textures they’ll be looking for in the winning sausages.
“I may not be the best at describing umami and sausage casings but I’m very excited to be giving my opinion,” said Tom Sainsbury, himself an old hand at the sausage awards.
“Vegan sausages are here to stay, they are healthier for you, better for the environment and are a more compassionate way of eating, whilst still enjoying your favourite foods.”
Vegan Society Spokesperson Claire Insley says, “With over 8 billion people and rising, the move towards a plant-based economy is ever more pressing. Plant-based sausages are a fun and easy way to look after our planet and our health.”
The trend for plant-based foods is continuing and likely to do so for the foreseeable future, as noted in this recent report https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/blogs/plant-based-food
The hunt for the best vegan sausage in Aotearoa will soon be underway, at Khu Khu Restaurant in Ponsonby from 9am till midday on 26th June.
The Vegan Society Awards work to reflect the variety and choice available in the plant-based world, here in Aotearoa.
Meet the Judges 2023
Helping us discover the best vegan bangers in NZ!
Aaron Pucci has clocked up 25 years in the food and beverage manufacturing industry.
His trusted palate has earned him numerous seats on judging panels for awards in New Zealand and Australia over 15 years.
Aaron is always on the lookout for new brands and products ~ especially those that are breaking new ground.
Aaron’s ‘food for thought’ is a desire for more manufacturers to take up the challenge of sustainable food operations and reducing their carbon footprint.
Multi-award-winning executive chef & trainer, TV personality, creative head and chef of the new series “Ignite the Chef in You” and President of the NZ Chef Association Auckland, Chef Jazz is an external verifier for City and Guilds, UK.
She has been judging in New Zealand’s Regional and National culinary salon competitions for the past nine years and is deputy chief judge for the Hospitality Championships.
She has worked in top hotels and restaurants in five countries – USA, UK, India, New Zealand and Spain.
Volker has worked around the globe in Germany, Ireland, United Kingdom, Australia, Estonia and now New Zealand. He has been Cordis Auckland’s Executive Chef since 2009 and has helped the hotel navigate many changes, as well as planning for an increase in demand with an additional 244 rooms in our Pinnacle Tower and banqueting rooms accommodating up to 1,300 guests. In this role Volker manages a brigade of over 60 chefs and retention and colleague satisfaction is higher than the industry average in this team.
Developing the award winning concept of Eight Restaurant, Cordis Auckland’s High Tea is recognised as one of the best in New Zealand and Volker designs, creates and delivers the menu for this, with a new offering each quarter.
Tom is a comedian, actor and writer best known for his skits on social media. But he is also a huge animal lover, a vegan for many years, and consumes a lot of food. He may not be the best at describing umami and sausage casings but he’s very excited to be giving his opinion.
Photos from Vegan Sausage Awards 2022
The Vegan Sausage Awards in the Media:
Check out the links below to see what others said about the 2022 winners:
