The Good Food Foundation will host its 2023 Good Food Awards in Portland for the first time ever. (Photo by Gamma Nine Photography)
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Since 2011, the Good Food Foundation has presented its prestigious Good Food Awards right in its founding city of San Francisco. For 2023, however, the event is moving from one foodie city to the next: Portland.
The Good Food Foundation was founded in 2010 by Sarah Weiner and Dominic Phillips, but didn’t get its current name until 2016. The purpose of the foundation is to empower companies and individuals who produce food responsibly.
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GFF has five main programs: Guild, Alliance, Mercantile, Fund and Awards – with the Awards being the hallmark of each year.
Since the foundation’s headquarters are in San Francisco, that’s usually where the much-anticipated awards ceremony takes place. The finalists, on the other hand, are based in each of the five regions of the country.
To qualify as a finalist for the awards, participants must complete an online entry form, pay an entry fee, and submit a sample of their products to blind tasters. Those who do well in the blind tasting are then interviewed about their ingredient sourcing and production methods.
Weiner, executive director of GFF, says Oregon has the second-highest number of finalists each year — after the state of California.
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That, and the fact that Weiner relocated to Portland from San Francisco in 2018, are just two factors in the decision to move the Friday, April 21 ceremony to the rose city.
“Institutions in other states aren’t really known for supporting the small boys and the sustainable boys because they generally focus a lot more on the bigger players,” the executive said. “But in Oregon [people] We just encourage everyone to be successful and provide resources.”
She added that GFF hosted its premier Portland Good Food Mercantile just last year, and there has been an outpouring of local support that has encouraged the organization to organize more events nearby.
Weiner went on to lead groups focused on the authenticity and sustainability of food in the state, such as the Oregon Dairy and Nutrition Council and Oregon State University’s Department of Food Science and Technology.
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More familiar names and faces will be in attendance at GFF’s first-ever awards ceremony at Portland’s Revolution Hall. Kachka, Olympia Provisions and Creo Chocolate are three finalists based in Portland.
Find out what other Oregon businesses are being recognized at the Good Food Awards here.
“It’s a moment to take stock and get out of your kitchen or roastery or brewery and really sit back and recognize and realize what an amazing thing you’re doing and how much people appreciate it,” Weiner said .
