Competitions

ACTA has been proud over many years of its close association with national coffee competitions in Australia,  assisting with the participation of experienced, independent judges.

The Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia ( RA&HS)

Commencing Q1 ’23 a new National Coffee Competition now takes place in South Australia, and this is one not to be missed!

Hosted by the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia ( RA&HS), this new competition  :

– counts with independent and experienced coffee judges drawn from all over Australia

– offers strictly enforced blind tasting of all coffee exhibits

– is backed up by the strength, absolute integrity and experience of ACTA 

– continues the deeply respected credibility and history of RA&HS

– provides the eventual winners with a prestigious RA&HS coffee award, boosting and enhancing their profile within the highly competitive Australian market – a great reason to compete.

Australia’s coffee industry can now celebrate a new benchmark in coffee quality.  

For more information and to access the website of RA&HS, please use the link as provided here : 

LInk to RA&HS website

The confirmed dates for 2024 are as follows:

Entries Open: Friday 12th January 2024.

Entries Close: Monday 26th February.

Delivery of exhibits: Wednesday 20th, Thursday 21st & Friday 22nd of March.

Judging Dates: Monday 25th, Tuesday 26th & Wednesday 27th of March.

Awards Presentation: Friday 19th April

RA&HS & ACTA have joined forces to offer coffee roasters an opportunity for their product to be judged within a neutral, independent and quality focussed setting .  Whether you love fruity Ethiopian notes, or the rich succulent molasses found in Colombian coffee, this is a coffee competition where roasters of all sizes can compete and stand out in Australia’s finest coffee show.   The best espresso blends are also welcome, as well as Piccolo blends,  lattés or plunger lovers. The panels of thirsty judges will be looking forward to savouring it all.

This new coffee competition :

– raises Australia’s coffee quality benchmark. 

– ensures all coffee exhibits are reviewed by experienced coffee industry judges only. 

– checks that all entries are also blind tasted only. 

– places coffees into roast level groups for more accurate evaluation. 

For the inaugural coffee competition in 2023, over 300 exhibits were received which was a very positive result, firmly cementing the Adelaide Competition as a key date in the annual coffee calendar.  11 Gold, 30 Silver and 58 Bronze medals were subsequently awarded, a marvelous testament to the high quality of the roasted coffees presented.

The Australian International Coffee Awards (AICA)

Established in 2013 by Melbourne Royal®, the Australian International Coffee Awards is the only international roasting competition in Australia. In 2020, the competition received more than 800 entries from over 180 exhibitors from around the world.

The Australian International Coffee Awards receives entries from countries around the world including New Zealand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Singapore, Canada, the USA and UK.

Roasters will be able to benchmark their products, use winning medals on packaging and promotional material.

For further information contact Oskar Long, on (03) 9281 7436 or at coffee@melbourneroyal.com.au. 

Sydney Royal Wine, Dairy & Fine Food Shows

Boasting a membership base of 12,000 people, the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW (RAS) is responsible for conducting the Sydney Royal Easter Show and the Sydney Royal Wine, Dairy and Fine Food Shows.

The Sydney Royal Wine, Dairy and Fine Food Shows set the standard in Australian wine and food judging. Sydney Royal Competitions judging areas comprise of Wine, Cheese and Dairy Produce, Aquaculture, Beer, Branded Beef, Branded Lamb, Bread, Cakes and Pies, Coffee, Deli Meats, Olive Oil, Pasta, and Regional Food.
The Sydney Royal Wine, Dairy and Fine Food Shows offer producers with a platform to benchmark their products within the Australian market. The Shows also provide extensive exposure to both the consumer market and industry professionals. Previous winners have experienced increased industry profile through the recognition of their Sydney Royal win as well as significant financial gains.
Only the most exceptional quality is recognised in all Competitions. Trophy and Champion Award winners represent a superior standard of excellence in their field. Gold, Silver and Bronze medal winners are presented with a certificate and are supplied with the branding material to promote their products as Sydney Royal winners.

Sydney Royal Coffee Competition

Please note, entries are now open for the 2023 Sydney Royal Fine Food Show ras nsw coffee competition. 
Entries will be open for 4 weeks and close Wednesday 14th of June.

The competition will be held on Monday the 14th of August. Note: Only 100% Australian grown and roasted coffees are eligible. 

Link to RAS NSW website
For over 10 years, the Sydney Royal Coffee Competition has judged some of Australia’s finest coffee. Established in 1998, the Competition has grown to nowadays judge over 220 Exhibits entered into six different classes:

Espresso

Plunger

Piccolo

Latte

Exhibits are judged on visual appearance, aroma and taste. The Competition is held in August every year as part of the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show. Coffee roasters who are interested in entering can contact the Wine Dairy and Fine Food Coordinator on (02) 9704 1353 for further information.

To stay true to the RAS charter and vision, the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show has also enforced since 2021 a higher Australian grown ingredients minimum to the coffee and chocolate categories in a bid to support the growth of the Australian chocolate and coffee industries.  These two competitions will now fall under the Specialty Foods category.  All Sydney Royal entries must be derived from 85 – 100% Australian grown ingredients, depending on the class and validity of added ingredients being available in Australia.

REWARDING EXCELLENCE IN AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE A division of the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW ABN 69 793 644 351 Sydney Showground, 1 Showground Road, Sydney Olympic Park NSW 2127 t 02 9704 1111 f 02 9704 1122 www.sydneyroyalshows.com.au

*Disclaimer – Most photos used in Events, Competition and Results pages have been kindly provided by the Sydney Royal Show taken during judging of the Sydney Royal Coffee Competition and copyright to the RAS.