DIRECTORS and staff at a Yorkshire coast brewery are celebrating after being shortlisted for a major national award.

Hunmanby-based Wold Top Brewery has reached the final of the Growth Business Northern England category of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) Awards.

The FDF Awards honour the talent and inspiration in the UK food and drink sector. Finalists will find out if they have triumphed on Monday, September 7, at an event at The Brewery, London, hosted by broadcaster and presenter Hardeep Singh Kohli.

The group and individual shortlists were chosen by a panel of judges comprised of industry experts and sponsors. Finalists include a range of well-known brands, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and people who are rising stars in the industry or established innovators and technical experts.

The Wold Newton brewery faces competition from Country Pudding, Delicious Alchemy, The Flava People (MRC), Hawkshead Relish and Yorvale Icecream to take the prestigious prize.

Brewery director Gill Mellor said they were proud to have reached the final.

"Since we were nominated as one of the Government's 50 Food Stars, we have been encouraged to enter national food and drink competitions and we're very pleased to have been shortlisted," she said.

Steve Barnes, FDF's economics and commercial services director, said: "We've had a record number of entries across the food and drink supply chain, including growers, retailers and artisan producers, ranging from the big global brands to SMEs.

"Our expert judging panel faced a huge challenge to get the entries down to a shortlist, but we're really pleased with the variety and number of entrants. This is a reminder of the talented, dedicated people there are working in Britain's food and drink industry."

The brewery's shortlist success comes on the back of the brewery's recent award for Emerging Exporter at the Insider Media International Trade Awards.

Farm-based Wold Top Brewery is part of the Higher Level Stewardship (HLS) scheme for environmental initiatives and is also working with the RSPB to promote its birdlife. Its range of award-winning ales is also available through the website, independent and multiple retailers, farm shops, delis, hotels, pubs and off licences.