WEST Dorset food producers are celebrating scooping six prestigious accolades at the Live Love Eat awards.

The Hive Beach Café at Burton Bradstock and Bridport Farmers’ Market both fought off stiff competition to be crowned the best in the south west, winning regional champion awards in the café and farmers’ market categories respectively.

Platinum awards for food and drink were also given out in fifteen different categories and Bridport Farmers’ Market, the Hive Beach Cafe, Denhay Farms at Broadoak and the Wet Fish Shop at Lyme Regis were the lucky winners to gain platinum awards for Dorset in their categories. Thousands of people turned out to vote in the awards, which celebrate the best produce each south west county has to offer.

West Dorset is renowned for the quality of its produce and the burgeoning food industry which is attracting national attention.

Director of the Hive Beach Café, Steve Attrill, 54, said it was a lovely surprise to be presented with the award.

“It’s great for the business. It proves we’ve been doing something right for the twenty plus years we’ve been here for.

“I think the thing that keeps us going is that we are constantly pushing new ideas.”

Simon Bennet, manager of the Wet Fish Shop, said it was a ‘privilege’ to win. He said: “It’s absolutely brilliant to win and it’s all been customer driven as well, which is what makes it extra special.

“It’s a privilege. 

“We are lucky to be in such a lovely setting and to get hold of such fresh fish.”

Mr Bennet, who was a fishmonger for 25 years before setting up the business in 2002, passed his thanks to their ‘dedicated’ staff and to his wife, who recently took on a key role in the company.

Live Love Eat is a collection of all of the best eateries the South West has to offer including restaurants, pubs, cafés and gastro pubs.

It aims to gradually make its way around the whole of the country leaving no stone unturned in finding the best eateries the UK has to offer and telling you all about them.

Vicki Sargent, 32, founder of Live Love Eat, said she created the business not only to offer advice and support to those in the food and drink industry, but to thank them too.

She said: “What I set out to achieve with the business was to show the public where they could get food and drink that are both local and quality, and this is what the awards celebrate.”

“It is all about the producers, restaurants and retailers, about them doing something brilliant, and we want to thank them for making lots of people very happy.”