ExportNZ Bay of Plenty Awards finalists announced

Finalists in the ExportNZ Bay of Plenty Awards were announced last night after a crop of excellent entries were received across a broad range of industry sectors.

This is the 10th year of the awards which celebrate innovative, brave and successful exporting 'stars' in the Bay of Plenty.

Convener of judges and orchardist at Golden Acres Orchard, Barry Squires, said they received outstanding entries in all categories.

"The industries that entrants operate in range from inbound tour operators to high tech and manufacturing, demonstrating the diversity of our Bay of Plenty economy.

"The judges are now hard at work on the difficult job of selecting the winners."

Winners will be announced at the 'A Night with the Stars'-themed awards on June 21.

Award-winning head writer of comedy show 7 Days, Nick Rado, will be the MC for a night of old-school Hollywood glitz and glamour.

A special award will also be presented on the night to the Service to Export Award winner, sponsored by the EMA.

This award is decided by a panel and past winners and recognises a significant contribution to local exporting success.

Principal sponsor Zespri's chief grower and Alliance officer David Courtney said every year ExportNZ Bay of Plenty did a great job of keeping everyone entertained throughout the awards night and he encouraged people to get their tickets.

"Make sure you're there on June 21 to celebrate some of the Bay of Plenty's best exporters, and embrace their pioneering spirit," he said.

Visit www.bopexportnzawards.org.nz to purchase tickets.

FINALISTS:
YOU Travel Best Emerging Business Award:
- Funk Estate
- Manaaki Adventures

Page Macrae Engineering Excellence in Innovation Award:
- BioBrew
- Xyst
- LawVu
- Bluelab Corporation

Beca Export Achievement Award:
- Heilala Vanilla - Ruby Grant, general manager of sales and marketing
- Florentines Foodservice NZ - Gregory Knight, managing director
- Ubco - Timothy Allan, chief executive

Sharp Tudhope Lawyers Best Medium-Large Business Award:
- Genera
- Automation & Electronics NZ