The finalists for Blas na hÉireann, The Irish Food Awards 2026, have been announced, with 11 exceptional producers from Co. Waterford making it through to the final stage of Ireland’s most prestigious food awards. 

The countdown is now officially on for the return to Dingle this autumn, where the very best of Irish food and drink will be celebrated from Thursday 1st October to Sunday 4th October, with the Blas Village, Showcase, Eat Ireland in a Day market and the awards themselves will be announced on Friday 2nd October.

Now in its 19th year, Blas na hÉireann continues to grow, with more than 3,000 entries submitted from across the island, and a record number of new producers taking part. The number of food and drink categories has also increased from 170 to over 200 this year. Bronze, silver and gold awards are presented across the food and drink categories, alongside major accolades including Supreme Champion, supported by Bord Bia and Best Artisan Producer, supported by the LEO Network. The judging, which took place over June and July in partnership with UCC and TU Dublin, is blind-tasted and scored by a network of expert judges, including chefs, buyers, academics, restaurateurs, and industry leaders. Only the top entries from each category make it to the finalist stage, which is a huge achievement in itself.

The finalists shortlisted from Co. Waterford across a wide range of categories are 7th Raven, Beara Bitters, Blackwater Distillery, cocoabyjudit, Coffee House Lane, Dawn Meats, Dungarvan Wild Honey, Irish Gourmet Butter, Legacy Irish Craft Cider Ltd., The Lemon drop and Knockanore Farmhouse Cheese.

One of those finalists Mark Bergin of Coffee House lane spoke to Ollie on The Big Breakfast Blaa.

Keep up to date on all the latest from The Big Breakfast Blaa with Ollie and Dymphna from 6am until 10am daily.

The finalists for <a href="https://www.irishfoodawards.com/">Blas&nbsp;na&nbsp;h&Eacute;ireann</a>, The Irish Food Awards 2026, have been announced, with&nbsp;11&nbsp;exceptional producers from&nbsp;Co. Waterford&nbsp;making it through to the final stage of Ireland&rsquo;s most prestigious food awards.&nbsp;
The countdown is now officially on for the return to Dingle this autumn, where the very best of Irish food and drink will be celebrated from Thursday 1st October to Sunday 4th October, with the Blas Village, Showcase, Eat Ireland in a Day market and the awards themselves will be announced on Friday 2nd October.
Now in its 19th year, Blas na h&Eacute;ireann continues to grow, with more than 3,000 entries submitted from across the island, and a record number of new producers taking part. The number of food and drink categories has also increased from 170 to over 200 this year. Bronze, silver and gold awards are presented across the food and drink categories, alongside major accolades including Supreme Champion,&nbsp;supported by <a href="https://www.bordbia.ie/">Bord Bia</a><a href="https://www.bordbia.ie/">&nbsp;</a>and Best Artisan Producer,&nbsp;supported by the <a href="https://www.localenterprise.ie/waterford/">LEO</a> Network.&nbsp;The judging, which took place over June and July in partnership with UCC and TU Dublin, is blind-tasted and scored by a network of expert judges, including chefs, buyers, academics, restaurateurs, and industry leaders.&nbsp;Only the top entries from each category make it to the finalist stage, which is a huge achievement in itself.
The finalists shortlisted from Co. Waterford across a wide range of categories are 7th Raven, Beara Bitters, Blackwater Distillery, cocoabyjudit, Coffee House Lane, Dawn Meats, Dungarvan Wild Honey, Irish Gourmet Butter, Legacy Irish Craft Cider Ltd., The Lemon drop and Knockanore Farmhouse Cheese.
One of those finalists Mark Bergin of <a href="https://coffeehouselane.ie/?srsltid=AfmBOopDQwb5WVkFzI5vMxiUPJTJdpIOTxxu62R9Ve8DF9nUJ9Kc0iUY">Coffee House lane</a> spoke to Ollie on The Big Breakfast Blaa.
<a href="https://wlrfm.com/podcasts/the-big-breakfast-blaa">Keep up to date on all the latest from The Big Breakfast Blaa with Ollie and Dymphna from 6am until 10am daily.</a>

Start your day with Ollie Carroll, Dymphna Nugent and the WLR News team on The Big Breakfast Blaa, who will bring you plenty of on-air banter, laughter, great music, fantastic competitions, features and much, much more… And as well as being entertained you’ll also be kept well informed with all the very latest news, sport and traffic updates from our team. It's as much a part of Waterford life as the Blaa itself! The Big Breakfast Blaa is brought to you in association with <a href="https://coffeehouselane.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Coffee House Lane</a> <a href="https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback">Listen back to The Big Breakfast Blaa here</a>.

Start your day with Ollie Carroll, Dymphna Nugent and the WLR News team on The Big Breakfast Blaa, who will bring you plenty of on-air banter, laughter, great music, fantastic competitions, features and much, much more… And as well as being entertained you’ll also be kept well informed with all the very latest news, sport and traffic updates from our team. It's as much a part of Waterford life as the Blaa itself! The Big Breakfast Blaa is brought to you in association with&nbsp;&lt;a href="<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://coffeehouselane.ie/">https://coffeehouselane.ie/</a>" target="_blank" rel="noopener"&gt;Coffee House Lane&lt;/a&gt;&nbsp;&lt;a href="<a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback&quot;>Listen">https://www.wlrfm.com/listenback"&gt;Listen</a> back to The Big Breakfast Blaa here&lt;/a&gt;.