Hunt for UK's organic faves is on

The search for the UK’s favourite organic products is on.

The Soil Association Organic Awards, previously known as the Organic Food Awards, have been showcasing the best in organic food and drink for 28 years.

This year sees an expanded range of categories for the first time so that organic fashion, restaurants, health and beauty products and even holidays can be recognised.

Open for entries until 27 June 2014, the Soil Association is calling on organic producers, retailers, café and restaurant owners and even hoteliers to enter their chocolate bars, caravanning holidays, moisturisers and mail order veg boxes. Categories include:

· Organic food and drink

· Organic shopping – including best supermarket, independent retailer and box scheme

· Organic living – including eating out, places to stay and farm visits

All entries must be made via the Soil Association website, and each entry costs £24, with the exception of the best supermarket award, which costs £120.

Full eligibility criteria and the online entry form are available from www.soilassociation.org/organicawards.

A panel of well-respected and high profile judges, including Michelin-starred chef, Josh Eggleton, organic beauty brand founder and TV personality, Jo Wood; and the founder of Otter Farm, Marc Diacono, will be shortlisting entries, which will then go forward to an online public vote during Organic September.

The winners will then be awarded at an exclusive ceremony, as part of the Soil Association Annual Conference on 8 October 2014.

Helen Browning, chief executive of the Soil Association, said: “This year’s Organic Awards are so exciting – a wonderful opportunity for such a wide range of businesses to tell the public how they are organic champions. I’m sure our great panel of judges will be challenged in their task to shortlist the entrants across the many new categories and I am delighted that the public get to have the final say on the overall winners.

“The awards are therefore a great opportunity for not only the products and businesses themselves to be recognised and celebrated, but also the passion and creativity of the people behind them who care so much about what they do.”

2013 was the first year that the organic sector has seen growth since 2008, with organic sales growing by 2.8 per cent, and four out of five households now buying organic products.

The 2014 Soil Association Organic Awards are open to organic certified products and services which are certified to any recognised organic certification scheme - not solely Soil Association Organic.