THE Foodservice Packaging Association (FPA) has announced the host and sponsors of the 2026 FPA Awards, which will take place at The Grand Hotel, Brighton on Thursday 5 March.
Comedian, actor, author, and presenter Matt Lucas – best known for his unforgettable roles in Little Britain and presenting The Great British Bake Off – will host the event. Matt’s wide-ranging career has also included TV shows Come Fly With Me, Shooting Stars, Dr Who, and movies such as Alice In Wonderland, Bridesmaids, Paddington, Wonka, and Gladiator 2. He also appeared in Les Misérables in the West End.
The 2026 FPA Awards will open for entries in November and ticket bookings shortly thereafter.
FPA executive chair Mike Revell said, “Each year our aim is to exceed expectations in terms of both the event and our host, and we were delighted to secure Matt Lucas for the 2026 Awards. However, neither a celebrity host or the other elements of the awards exhibition and awards evening would be possible without the generosity of our sponsors. As always, we are hugely grateful for the support they provide.”
The individual award sponsors are as follows:
| Award | Sponsor |
| Apprentice of the Year | Cofresco |
| Corporate Social Responsibility | Go-Pak |
| Designer of the Year | Faerch |
| Environmental Sustainability | South Staffordshire Paper Products |
| Food and Drink Manufacturer | Seda |
| Foodservice Caterer Operator | NCCO |
| Foodservice Retail Operator | ProAmpac |
| Manufacturer | Bunzl Catering Supplies |
| Marketing Campaign | Packaging Innovations and Empack |
| National Distributor | Cromwell Polythene |
| Product Innovation (front of house) | Bidfood |
| Product Innovation (back of house) | Bidfood |
| Regional Distributor | Amipak |
| Rising Star | AV International Solutions |
| Unsung Hero | The Socius Network |
The event sponsors are:
| Event sponsorship | Sponsor |
| Overall event sponsor | Packaging Innovations and Empack |
| Afternoon tea | H-Pack |
| Awards Exhibition and evening snacks | EP Group |
| Casino | Northwood |
| Evening cocktails | To be confirmed |
| Wine with dinner | Celebration Packaging |
