And the winners are…

Tobacco Reporter hands out its 2012 Golden Leaf Awards.

TR Staff Report

Tobacco Reporter handed out its 2012 Golden Leaf Awards on June 14 during the Global Tobacco Networking Forum. The ceremony took place on a conference ship plying the Belgian and Dutch coastal waters. Four companies received trophies in five different categories. Mane Flavors took home awards in two separate categories. The Golden Leaf Awards are sponsored exclusively by BMJ, a global supplier of cigarette papers headquartered in Indonesia.

Alliance One International received a Golden Leaf Award in the most impressive public service initiative category. The company was recognized for its support of U.S. tobacco growers. In the aftermath of Hurricane Irene and the retreat from the market of U.S. Tobacco Growers Direct (USGD), AOI helped stabilize the U.S. flue-cured market by taking over the USGD contracted tobacco.

The tobacco business unit of Mane, a global flavorings house headquartered in France, received a Golden Leaf Award in the most outstanding service to the industry and most committed to quality categories. For the past 15 years, Mane’s tobacco business unit has been a world leader in new flavor technology innovations for the global tobacco industry. The company has been at the forefront of major innovations such as filter-flavor technologies as well as side-stream smoke amelioration technologies.

Perten Instruments received a Golden Leaf Award in the most exciting newcomer to the industry category. The company has put itself firmly on the tobacco map with its new generation of on-line NIR instruments, among other equipment.

Heinen-Koehl received a Golden Leaf award in the most promising product introduction category for its Twister multipurpose unit. Capable of conditioning and expanding different types of tobacco product, the Twister eliminates the need for soaking silos, saving the customer time and money. The Twister also offers remarkable increases in filling power.

The 2012 ceremony marked the seventh edition of the Golden Leaf Awards. Established in 2006 to recognize outstanding accomplishments by the industry and its suppliers, the previous events took place in Bali, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, Bangkok, Bangalore and Prague.

To enter into the 2013 competition, please visit www.tobaccoreporter.com.