Two West Sussex pie makers take home three prizes in British Pie Awards

Midhurst pie-maker MUD Foods took home the awards for best Speciality Meat and Game Pie with its Mud Foods' Game Pie. The company then scooped a second award for best Free From Pie with its Mud Foods' Gluten Free Chicken, Ham and Leek Pie.

Turner’s Pies Ltd impressed judges enough with its Turner's Mushroom and Asparagus Pie to be crowned best Vegetarian Pie at the awards, beating off 55 other mouth-watering entries in the category.

The pioneering awards, now in its 15th year, celebrate the nation’s most delicious pies – from the traditionally British to the tantalisingly innovative and totally whacky.

Christian Barrington, owner of MUD Foods, said: “This is a very special year for us. It feels like quite a momentous occasion. It’s a hat trick for our game pie as its the third time it’s been crowned a champion winning pie. And it’s also the first time being crowed champion with one of our recently-launched gluten-free range. I’m very proud and thankful to my fantastic team of pie-oneers, who work tirelessly to keep our standards at the highest level.”

Matthew O’Callaghan, chairman of the Melton Mowbray Pork Pie Association and host of the British Pie Awards, said: “We are always highly encouraged to see the nation’s love of pies at these annual awards, and this year there has been a huge level of excitement and creativity.

“On Wednesday we had the pleasure of enjoying some spectacular pies, and both MUD Foods and Turner's Pies Ltd have overcome exceptionally stiff competition for best pies in their respective categories. These awards celebrate the skill of British piemakers across the nation, so I’d like to say a particular congratulations to them for this success.”

The contest comprises 23 different classes or types of pie including traditional favourites and newcomers such as Vegan and Gluten Free Pies. This year in a surprise twist, meat-based pie entries dominated the top four classes for the first time since 2019, with Beef and Any Flavour topping the entry rankings.