It’s official, Westmere Butchery has taken out the top prize in this year’s sausage awards with its pork and leek iteration.
The historic Auckland business received the Supreme Award accolade at the 2024 Dunningham’s Great New Zealand Sausage Competition, presented at an industry event in Auckland on Tuesday night.
What makes a winning snag? Judges acknowledged the Westmere Butchery’s classic combination of flavours. Kathy Paterson noted that the “perfectly cooked” leek gave the sausage an exceptional texture, declaring it “a truly delicious sausage”. Judge Brian Everton lauded its technical superiority, with “well-balanced and evenly distributed the ingredients were throughout the sausage”.
Over 800 bangers, snags, snarlers, meatballs and patties from 108 businesses competed across 16 categories – 13 for sausages and three mince sections.
Judging was a two-stage process. The first took eight days, with a 34-strong panel assessing composition, taste, texture and appearance. Top-scoring category entries moved on to the next round, where they competed for the Supreme Award.
One of the country’s many food awards – 2024 has seen the nation’s best pies, toasted sandwiches and olive oil all judged and declared – the Dunningham’s Great New Zealand Sausage Competition has been running for 27 years.
Westmere Butchery has taken out the top prize before, winning the supreme award in 2019 with its chicken, leek and bacon sausage.
It also got top honours in 2018; the race was so close that it was announced as a draw, with Westmere butchery and New World Te Rapa sharing the top gong.
It’s not the first time the contest has been declared a tie; 2022 saw New World Te Rapa (again) and Auckland’s Zaroa Meats named joint winners.
In 2014 Westmere Butchery scored the people’s choice award for its peri peri chicken sausage, and in 2022 its bone-in leg ham was awarded best ham at the New Zealand Bacon and Ham Awards.
The 2024 Dunningham’s Great New Zealand Sausage Competition Winners
- Supreme Winner: Westmere Butchery – Pork and leek sausage
- Traditional Category Champion: Westmere Butchery – Pork and leek sausage
- Continental Fresh Category Champion: Mapari Meats in Mt Wellington – Venison chorizo sausage
- People’s Choice Award: Mapari Meats in Mt Wellington – Venison chorizo sausage
- Flavours Of The World Category Champion: Marbled, Auckland – Boerewors
- Dunninghams Choice Award: Princes Street Butcher & Kitchen in Dunedin – Traditional pork sausage
- Gourmet Pork Category Champion: New World Birkenhead – Pork, jalapeno and cheese sausage
- Gourmet Beef Category Champion: Four Square Martinborough – Beef and triple cheese
- Gourmet Varietal Category Champion: Cattermoles Butchery, Kaiapoi – Jalapeno, smoked cheddar and ham sausage
- Gourmet Poultry Category Champion: Links Quality Meats, Dunedin – Maple and Sriracha chicken sausage
- Pre-Cooked Category Champion: Zaroa Meats, Parnell – Cheese Taranaki sausage
- Beef Category Champion: New World Te Rapa, Hamilton – Angus beef sausage
- Pork Category Champion: Princes Street Butcher and Kitchen, Dunedin – Traditional pork sausage
- Dunninghams Choice Award: Princes Street Butcher and Kitchen, Dunedin – Traditional pork sausage
- Black Pudding/Rounds Category Champion: Pokeno Bacon – Johnny’s black pudding sausage
- Heat n Eat Category Champion: Pokeno Bacon – Franks Frankfurter
- Continental Ready to Eat Category Champion: CHOP Online Meats – Smoked paprika, jalapeno and cheese kransky sausage
- Burger Patties Flavoured Category Champion: New World Hastings – Beef, cranberry and camembert pattie
- Burger Patties Classic Category Champion: Waipawa Butchery, Hawkes Bay – Patangata beef pattie
- Meatballs Category Champion: Peter Timbs Meats Ltd, Christchurch – Italian Meatballs