Please read the Rules below and scroll down to proceed to enter
Plant-Based Excellence Awards (PBEA) Contest
OFFICIAL RULES
1. ELIGIBILITY; METHOD TO ENTER; SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
The Contest is open only to legal residents of the continental United States, Canada (excluding Quebec), and the countries of the European Union (EU) and European Economic Area (EEA), who are at least the age of majority in their country, state, province, or territory of residence at the time of entry (typically 18 years of age or older). Employees of Plant Based World Expo, Emerald, advertising and promotion agencies, suppliers, and immediate family members of such employees are not eligible to participate in the Contest. The Contest is subject to all applicable federal, state, provincial, and local laws and regulations and is void where prohibited or restricted by law.
2. START AND END DATES
Entries will be accepted starting on May 15, 2025 9:00 AM, BST and ending August 1, 2025 5:00 PM, BST.
3. HOW TO ENTER
To enter the Contest, the participant (“Participant” or “You/ Your”) must:
1. Provide a product sample within the three-week sample delivery window commencing from 25th July 2025 until 15th August 2025, to the specified address using the shipping label that is provided to you
2. Must complete all questions on the online entry form. Failure to fill in required fields or to submit incorrect information may result in disqualification.
3. Entrees must include a professional-quality, high-resolution colour photography. Files must be under 5MB and uploaded as a .JPG, .PNG, .GIF file type. Each photo must be 300 DPI in resolution. Entries that are incomplete or do not adhere to the rules or specifications may be disqualified at the sole discretion of Sponsor.
4. The entry fee per product is £150+VAT. For companies exhibiting at Plant Based World Expo Europe 2025, a discounted rate of £100+VAT will be applied after 1 free product entry per exhibitor.
Companies in each category (listed below) who complete the online entry form, send in their product, and provide payment for the contest entry fee where applicable will be eligible to win prize below. No refunds of entry fees will be issued.
4. CONDITIONS TO ENTRY
By participating in this Contest, You:
· agree to be fully and unconditionally bound by these Rules;
· represent and warrant that You meet the eligibility requirements;
· represent and warrant that your entry is an original work of authorship, and does not violate any third-party proprietary or intellectual property rights; and
· agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Sponsor, its subsidiary and affiliated companies, and all of their respective officers, directors, agents and employees from and against all third party claims, demands, liabilities, judgments, causes of action, suits, and all expenses and costs incidental thereto including reasonable attorneys' fees based upon or arising out of Your negligence or willful misconduct.
If Your entry infringes upon any third-party rights, You will be disqualified at the sole discretion of Sponsor.
5. DESCRIPTION AND VALUE OF THE PRIZE; ODDS OF WINNING
The categories of the Contest are:
1. Meat Alternatives to include meat-mimic burgers, sausages, bacon, chicken, beef, pork
2. Fish and Seafood Alternatives to include all fish, shellfish, crustaceans
3. Wholefoods Protein to include tofu, tempeh, vegetable-based
4. Ready Meals to include all ready meals, pre-prepared pizza
5. Deli Products to include all pies, rolls, cold cuts, pastries, dips, pate, smoked foods
6. Dairy Alternatives to include milks, yogurts, creams, spreads
7. Dairy Alternatives Cheese
8. Ice Cream and Frozen Desserts
9. Egg Replacements
10. Baked Goods to include bread, cakes, biscuits, confections
11. Savoury Snacking to include all crisps, popcorn, nuts
12. Sweet Snacking to include confectionary, sweets, chocolate
13. Beverages to include sodas, juices, non-alcoholic drinks
14. Alcoholic Beverages to include wines, beers, spirits
15. Condiments, Preserves and Ferments
All qualifying entries will be scored by the judges. The total score they receive will determine if they are given Bronze, Silver or Gold status for their entry. Bronze, Silver or Gold entries will receive the following: Mention on the Plant Based World Expo website, a digital PDF certificate and associated branding to use on marketing materials.
There will be winner(s) of the Contest (the “Winner(s)”) for each category. This will be the highest-scoring entry within a category, and the winner(s) will receive a prize as follows: Feature in Plant Based World Expo Europe and Plant Based World Pulse websites as well as a “Category Award” trophy.
In addition to the category winners, there will also be one Grand Prize Winner, who achieves the highest judging score in the contest across all categories, who will win: Feature in Plant Based World Expo Europe and Plant Based World Pulse websites as well as a “Best of 2025” trophy.
No cash or other prize substitution shall be permitted except at Sponsor’s discretion. The prize is non-transferable. Acceptance of prize constitutes permission for Sponsor to use Winner’s name, likeness, and entry for purposes of advertising and trade without further compensation, unless prohibited by law.
6. JUDGING INFORMATION AND CRITERIA
Sponsor will judge Contest based on such criteria as:
1. Taste – 50% of score to include aroma, texture, taste and review of ingredients with a focus on clean deck.
2. Appearance – 30% of score to include packaging and product.
3. Sustainability – 20% of score to include recyclability of packaging and composition of packaging.
7. NOTIFICATION OF WINNER(S)
Winner(s) will be announced on or before November 29th, 2025 on Plant Based World Expo Europe and Plant Based World Pulse Website Winner(s) will also be notified by email within five (5) days following selection of Winner(s). Sponsor shall have no liability for any Winner’s failure to receive notices due to spam, junk e-mail or other security settings or for any Winner’s provision of incorrect or otherwise non-functioning contact information. If a Winner cannot be contacted, is ineligible, fails to claim the prize within ten (10) days from the time award notification was sent, or fails to timely return a completed and executed declaration and release as required, the prize may be forfeited and an alternate Winner may be selected. Receipt by Winner(s) of the prize offered in this Contest is conditioned upon compliance with any and all federal, state, and local laws and regulations.
8. WINNER’S OBLIGATIONS
As a condition of being declared a winner and receiving any prize, each selected entrant must comply with the following requirements:
- Documentation:
Each selected winner may be required to complete, sign, and return a declaration of eligibility, a liability release, and, where lawful, a publicity release, within 14 days. Failure to do so may result in disqualification and selection of an alternate winner. - Verification:
Each selected winner may be required to provide proof of identity, age, and residency satisfactory to the Organizer, in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. - Publicity:
Except where prohibited by law, by accepting a prize, each winner consents to the use of their name, likeness, city and country of residence, and prize information for advertising and promotional purposes in any media worldwide, without additional compensation. For residents of the European Union/EEA and other jurisdictions with enhanced privacy protections, any such use will be subject to the winner’s explicit consent, which may be withdrawn at any time without affecting eligibility for the prize. - Taxes:
Each winner is solely responsible for any taxes, duties, or other charges applicable to the receipt or use of the prize, in accordance with the laws of their jurisdiction of residence. Winners agree to provide any information or documentation required for tax reporting or regulatory compliance. - Compliance:
If a selected winner fails to comply with these Official Rules, cannot be contacted within the time specified, or is found to be ineligible, the prize may be forfeited and an alternate winner may be selected at the Organizer’s sole discretion. - Legal Restrictions:
Nothing in these Official Rules shall require a winner to undertake any obligation that is prohibited by the laws of their country, state, or province of residence. The Organizer will comply with all applicable consumer protection and privacy laws in the administration of winner obligations.
9. RELEASE
By participating, You release and agree to hold harmless Sponsor, its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, advertising and promotion agencies and all of their respective directors, officers, employees, representatives and agents from any and all liability for any claims, injury, loss or damage of any kind to persons (including, without limitation, death) or property, arising directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from or in connection with the acceptance, possession, use or misuse of any prize, participation in this Contest, or any Contest-related activity. NOTWITHSTANDING THE FOREGOING, IN THE EVENT THAT THE PRECEDING RELEASE IS DETERMINED BY A COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION TO BE INVALID OR VOID FOR ANY REASON, THE PARTICIPANT AGREES THAT, BY ENTERING THE CONTEST, (I) ANY CLAIMS, JUDGMENTS AND AWARDS SHALL BE LIMITED TO ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET COSTS INCURRED, BUT IN NO EVENT ATTORNEYS’ FEES; AND (II) UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES WILL ANY PARTICIPANT BE PERMITTED TO OBTAIN ANY AWARD FOR, AND PARTICIPANT HEREBY WAIVES ALL RIGHTS TO CLAIM, ANY OTHER DAMAGES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.
10. PRIVACY POLICY
By participating in the Contest, entrants acknowledge and agree that Emerald X will collect, use, and process their personal data solely for the purposes of administering the Contest, verifying eligibility, selecting and contacting winners, and delivering prizes. The Organizer will process personal data in accordance with all applicable data protection laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for EU/EEA residents and the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) for Canadian residents. Where required by law, the Organizer will obtain explicit consent for any additional processing, such as for marketing or publicity purposes, and such consent may be withdrawn at any time without affecting the entrant’s participation or chances of winning.
Personal data may be shared with third-party service providers engaged to assist in the administration of the Contest, but only to the extent necessary for that purpose and always subject to appropriate confidentiality and security measures. If personal data is transferred outside the entrant’s country of residence, including outside the EU/EEA, such transfers will be made in compliance with applicable data protection laws and subject to appropriate safeguards.
Entrants have the right to access, rectify, or erase their personal data, to restrict or object to its processing, and (for EU/EEA residents) to data portability. Entrants may contact the Organizer at privacy@emeraldx.com to exercise these rights or to make inquiries regarding the Organizer’s privacy practices. For more information, please refer to the Organizer’s full Privacy Policy at https://www.emeraldx.com/privacy-policy/.
11. GOVERNING LAW
By entering, You agree that all issues and questions concerning the construction, validity, interpretation and enforceability of these Contest Official Rules, or the rights and obligations of participants and Sponsor in connection with the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the substantive laws of the State of California without regard to its conflicts of law provisions. All participants hereby consent to the jurisdiction and venue of the federal or state courts located in Orange County, California.
12. WINNER LIST
For the names of the Contest winners, send a self-addressed stamped envelope with your request to: Plant Based World, Emerald, 31910 Del Obispo, Suite 200, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675. Winner list requests must be received by Sponsor by November 26, 2025.
13. RIGHT TO CANCEL OR SUSPEND CONTEST
If for any reason the Contest is not capable of running as planned due to causes beyond the control of Sponsor that corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, integrity, or proper conduct of this Contest, Sponsor reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any participant(s) who tamper with the entry process, and/or to cancel, terminate, modify, or suspend the Contest. If Sponsor elects to cancel or terminate the Contest, Sponsor will not retain any rights in the submitted photographs and will return the entry fees.
14. SPONSOR
Emerald X, LLC, 100 Broadway, Floor 14, New York, NY 10005.