On the day of the 100th anniversary celebrating when women first got the vote in the UK, YPL Exhibitions & Events, organisers of the new Women In Meat Industry Awards, confirmed two more category partners have joined the initiative, and that celebrity chef Lesley Waters is to co-host the black tie dinner and Awards evening in London on 16th November.
RSPCA Assured has taken up the retail category partnership, whilst Proseal has confirmed it is to support the manufacturing category. They join Kerry Taste & Nutrition which was quick to take up the Meat Businesswoman of the Year Award category after the launch was announced, and all these join generic sponsors Ladies In Pigs and the Ladies In Beef organisations.
VIP host Lesley Waters is well known for her cookery books, and television appearances on Ready Steady Cook (BBC), Great Food Live (UKTV), and This Morning (ITV). Lesley has her immensely successful cookery school based at Abbot’s Hill Farm in Dorset, where she also lives with her husband and two children.
Lesley studied French Cuisine for three years at Ealing College, which included time as a chef at the Waldorf Hotel. During this training period, she won one gold, and two silver medals at Hotelympia and was awarded a scholarship to the Hotel Intercontinental, Dusseldorf. She joined Prue Leith’s Restaurant and was quickly promoted to senior chef. She then worked as a freelance corporate chef and caterer for government officials before joining Leiths School of Food and Wine as an instructor, rising to head tutor. Here she perfected her cookery demonstration and food photography skills. She has often represented British food at international cookery displays, taking as her theme ‘good food for health’s sake’.
She has worked in television since 1989 and her varied career has included writing and presenting. Lesley appeared on the popular series Chefs: Put Your Menu Where Your Mouth Is for BBC1, and on Food Network’s The Big Eat, and Dog Rescuers on Channel 5.
An accomplished writer, Lesley has written many cookery books, including collaborations with Sainsbury’s and Weight Watchers and is regularly in demand for her food journalism. Her book titles include: Fifteen Minute Feasts, Four Seasons Cookery, Classic Starters, Juice Up Your Energy Levels, Broader Than Beans, Cooler Than Chillies, Healthy Food, and A Year at Abbots Hill, plus a revised edition of New to Cooking. All have enjoyed significant sales and acclaim.
Commenting on the news, editor of Meat Management magazine Emily Ansell Elfer said: “We are delighted with the response to the Women In Meat Awards and expect the remaining categories to be agreed with partners very soon. It is also a great pleasure to announce Lesley Walters as our celebrity chef host. I am sure she will do a great job and contribute to what promises to be a spectacular evening on 16th November.”
For details of how to become a category partner contact Michelle Ingerfield on 01908 613323 or email michelle.i@yandellmedia.com
To reserve dinner tickets or tables email Emma Cash emma.c@yandellmedia.com
