About
The Good Food Awards rely on the expertise of the pantry community to create the tasting, determine judges and set standards for the category. Read on to learn who has been integral to building the category, as well as what the pantry standard are and who will be judging this year.
Committee
Co-ChairsEllen Rawley
Lead Consultant at Ellen Rawley Creative & Strategy, Inc.
Ellen Rawley, founder of Ellen Rawley Creative & Strategy, works with farmers and other integrity-based product businesses to launch & sell profitable products. Her specialties include compliance, grant writing, and go-to-market strategy. Products she has helped launch can be found at farmers’ markets, in grocery stores, specialty shops, magazines like Food & Wine, and high-end spas. She believes that products made with passion and conviction can change our relationship to the land and to each other.
Ashley Xie
Co-Founder at Rooted Fare
Ashley is a daughter of immigrant restauranteurs and a 2nd generation Chinese American. Currently, she’s the co-founder of Rooted Fare, a company that partners and profit shares with immigrant chefs to create sauces to make cooking Asian comfort foods easy. She’s previously worked with the Good Food Foundation, Meadow Lark Farm Dinners, Momofuku, and the NYC Health Department. Ashley holds degrees in Natural Sciences from Johns Hopkins University and a MA in Food Studies from New York University.
Check back soon!
Standards
In order to be eligible for a Good Food Award, pantry entries must meet the following standards:
- Made in the USA or US territories.
- Made with a balanced objective of local, organic and highest-quality.*
- Made with transparency in supply chain.**
- Free of high fructose corn syrup and artificial ingredients, including colors, flavors and preservatives.
- Made with rBGH-free milk, where milk is used.
- Made with domestic, non-petroleum based vinegar where vinegar is used.
- Free of genetically modified ingredients.
- Made with spices that are certified organic, Fair Trade or traceable to the farm level.*
- Made by a crafter that is an upstanding member of the good food community, committed to equity and inclusion in all levels of their business,*** as exemplified through integrating these practices:
- Offering a diversity, equity, and inclusion training to staff members and/or leadership annually.
- Thoughtfully acknowledging the heritage of culturally-specific food on websites, packaging and/or marketing materials.
- For the small percentage of Good Food community that operates on a significantly larger scale, meeting additional criteria related to board diversity, maternity leave and employment practices.***
*Ingredients that make up less than 2% of the product, such as spices, sugar or lemon juice, may be sourced from farther afield, or from a larger distributor.
**That is, an earnest attempt is made to verify the origin and production methods of the ingredient. If made with ingredients that are not grown domestically on a commercial scale, a farm-direct or certified organic source is sought out and documentation of this search, including notes on calling distributors, is provided.
***Check if you are in the 2% of companies meeting the Good Food Foundation definition of large scale, and review the addition criteria on the Rules & Regulations page.
Subcategories
Additionally, pantry entries must fit within one of the following subcategories:
- Pasta/Pizza Sauce
- Hot Sauce
- BBQ Sauce
- Dressing & Marinades
- Salt Cured & Oil Packed
- Pantry Sauces & Pastes (e.g., miso, sambal, curry paste)
- Salsas, Relishes & Chutneys (e.g., onion chutney, tomatillo salsa)
- Condiments (e.g., mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard)
- Flavor Bases (e.g., fish sauce, soy sauce)
- Maple Syrups
- Nut Butters
- Vinegars
2021 Judges
Carrie Sullivan
Project Coordinator, World Central Kitchen
Tammy Tan
Owner, Spice Hound
Brandon Buza
Good Food Advocate
Reem Assil
Baker/Chef/Owner, Reem's California
Leela Freeman
Former Cheese Monger at Epicurean Trader
Evan Allumbaugh
Chef de Cuisine, Che Fico
April Word
Head of Culinary, Thumbtack
Wesley Monahan
Nutritional Counselor, Wellness Chef
Karen Leibowitz
Executive Director, Zero Foodprint
Nafy Flatley
Sales, Teranga
Phyllis Grant
Food Writer, Dash & Bella
Alison Acerra
Founder, Chief Strategist, Strategic Nutrition Design
Allyson Holt
VP DMM Merchandising, Entertainment, Cost Plus World Market
Kai Hinson
Senior Product Category Manager, Patagonia Provisions
Susie Wyshak
Good Food Business Helper, Food Starter
Dava Guthmiller
Founder & COO, Noise 13
Karen Solomon
Cookbook Author, Author, Asian Pickles & Jam It, Pickle It, Cure It
Leah Hammerman
Confections Co-Chair, Good Food Foundation
Yana Gilbuena
Chef, Salo Series
April Fredrickson
Service Manager, Bi-Rite Family of Businesses
Tony Tung
Chef and Owner, Good to Eat Dumplings