Alliance Group have received top honours at the 2024 Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards, winning four gold medals, one for every cut they entered. 

The co-operative’s Pure South Handpicked 55 Day Aged Beef ribeye, Pure South beef whole ribeye, Pure South venison five rib rack and Pure South French lamb rack all won gold.

The awards celebrate inspiring Kiwis who harvest, grow and produce New Zealand’s outstanding food and drink.

Entries are judged on a range of criteria including aroma, visual appearance, flavour, consistency, quality, sustainability, brand story and packaging. 

Alliance Group chief executive Willie Wiese said the awards reflected the co-operative’s farmers’ dedication to quality and Alliance’s commitment to building a differentiated premium portfolio. 

“We are now six years into our journey of steadily expanding our range to provide our farmers with opportunities to partner with us on new products to meet the exacting demands of customers around the world. Our products are getting rave reviews across the globe and we are raising the bar for world-class beef, lamb and venison.”

Judges said the Pure South Handpicked Beef 55 Day Aged Ribeye was “heartwarming”. The cut was described as having, “brilliant caramelisation, intense flavour, great chew and mouthfeel, with marbling and fat adding to the brilliant flavour.” 

They “just loved” the Pure South Beef Whole Ribeye, describing it as meat that delivers, tender as butter, beefy with sensational caramelisation and delicious fat.

The Pure South Venison five rib was, “melt in the mouth and tender.” The Pure South French lamb rack was found to be lovely and tender, with a beautiful, sweet lamb aroma, substantial meat ratio to fat, a clean taste and clean fat.  

In November 2023, Alliance’s Pure South Handpicked 55 Day Aged Beef ribeye was named best grass-fed steak and the best ribeye in the world at the World Steak Challenge.