Qld/NSW Branch held our 2024 Excellence Awards on Friday 13 September at the Comcater Brisbane showroom.

A big thank you to the Comcater Brisbane team for hosting the event and to our food sponsors for the night Patties Foods, Birch & Waite and Bidfood. Also, a big thanks to our award sponsors Health & Wellbeing Qld, who sponsored the Leadership Award, and Nutritious Cuisine who sponsored our Values in Action / Exceptional Customer Service Award.

The Awards presents a terrific opportunity to publicly acknowledge and showcase some of the unsung heroes of our industry – those hard workers who go above and beyond for their residents, patients and customers. I’d like to thank everyone who took the time and trouble to submit nominations and our Platinum and Gold Supporters who have got behind the Awards and continue to help us make them possible. You can read all about our Award winners in the stories in this issue.

In the same vein, I’d like to draw your attention to the upcoming IHHC Culinary Competition, now entering its third year. We are all excited to once again be showcasing the skills of our health and aged care chefs, with the finalists’ cook off set to be held on the opening night of the IHHC National Conference on 4 November at Crown Perth. It promises to be a nail-biting event, with Alistair McLeod returning as MC and encouraging us all to count down as the finalists cook, prep and plate up against the clock for our panel of judges. I hope to see many of you there!

Finally, the Qld/NSW AGM is coming up and I would like to encourage all members to come along and get involved. All committee positions will be open for nominations.

LIAM O’TOOLE Acting QLD/NSW Chair