Since we won, our retail store footprint increased 740% in major markets with a 1200% increase in online sales.
- Reuben Canada, Jin+Ja, 2013 Winner
Welcome to the 2027 sofi™ Awards!
Presented by the Specialty Food Association, the sofi Awards are among the most prestigious honors in the specialty food industry.
Established in 1972, the awards celebrate outstanding products across 25 categories, including snacks, beverages, cheese, and frozen. Winners are selected through a rigorous blind tasting process by a panel of top industry buyers, with evaluations based on taste, ingredient quality, and innovation.
Your products. Today’s tastemakers. One epic competition.
What Winners say about the sofi Awards
We had many companies seek us out specifically because of the Sofi award. It also put us on Oprah's radar and this product was chosen for the November O-List and published in O, The Oprah magazine.
- Chris White, Mount Mansfield Maple Products, 2017 WinnerRecognition of our creativity, dedication to the industry and hard work to keep the consumer engaged. Winning a sofi is the highest reward you can receive and it validates everything you do every day.
- Paolo Volpati-Kedra, BC Gourmet USA, Inc., 2017 WinnerThe sofi opened up a number of leads for us at the show. We had retailers, distributors, and buyers contacting us before the show started and seeking out our booth throughout the weekend. As we follow up on those leads, the importance of the sofi is shining through. It gave us legitimacy in the industry as a new company.
- Kevin Bratcher, Supreme Specialty Foods, 2018 WinnerIt has been a tremendous honor to have won a SOFI award. We've met some potential buyers that would not have been available to us without the exposure and the SOFI team has been extraordinary.
– Debra Every, Me-Oh-My Foods, Inc., 2018 WinnerWhat Buyers say about the sofi Awards
The sofi logo always grabs my attention. It means that a product has not only won over a slew of discerning palates, but that there's likely to be a great story behind it as well.
– Meredith Ochs, Sirius XM Radio, NPRWe look to sofi Winners and Finalists because we know that they represent only the highest caliber of products.
– Alison Kunetka, Food Development, Williams-SonomaWhen evaluating new specialty foods to add to our tasting rooms, sofi Winners start at the top of the list—they are consistently in the top 10% of our bestselling specialty food items.
– Eric Larson, Director of Retail Strategy, Cooper’s Hawk Winery & RestaurantsA sofi Award is a solid endorsement of a product’s excellence. Our sales team is able to present these products to our customers with confidence that they are of superior quality and on trend.
– Beth Haley, VP, Vendor Relations, DPI Specialty FoodThe sofi Awards are a great resource to find the newest & most innovative products in the industry.
– Laura Granston, Research and Development Manager, Kings Food Markets, Inc.When & How to Enter
Applications for the 2024 sofi Awards open on February 8, 2024.
Online Entries Open – June 22-July 31, 2026
Product Samples Accepted - August 3-31, 2026
Blind Judging - September – October 2026
sofi Gold and Packaging Award Finalists Notified – October 16, 2026
sofi Gold and Packaging Award Finalists Announced – October 19, 2026
sofi Gold Award and Grand Honors Revealed Live – January 2027 at Winter FancyFaire*
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