A tender image, A Woman Eats in the Canteen of the Soviet-era Sanatorium, by British photographer Jo Kearney, is the Overall Winner of the World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®, the world’s greatest celebration of food photography.
The image, which first won the Fortnum & Mason Food at the Table category, was taken at the Khoja Obi Garm sanatorium in the mountains of Tajikistan. The colossal concrete complex is built on radon-rich hot springs and dates back to the Soviet era. It remains one of the few such sanatoria still in operation, where guests follow prescribed treatments such as thermal bathing and steam therapy, and are served meals of nourishing food – soups, fruit, tea and traditional Tajik fare – in keeping with the sanatorium’s restorative ethos. With a cost of about £25 per day for board, lodging and treatments, the sanitorium is immensely popular.
“There is so much to see and so much to feel in this image,” says Caroline Kenyon, Founder, World Food Photography Awards sponsored by Tenderstem®. “An old woman pours herself tea – but it’s so much more than just that. The expression on her crevassed face is beautiful, it moved me to tears. She is alone, her simple breakfast on the table before her echoes the fruit in the painting on the wall behind. Against the parched colours of the scene through the window, the rich crimson chairs give a regal quality to the setting, and though humbly dressed, her dignified bearing is queenly too. She has seen much in life, we are sure, but holds her head high.”
A photographer from South Africa rose triumphant from nearly 9,000 entries submitted from over 50 countries around the world. Louhani Els was Highly Commended in the Cake Award category with her capture ‘Food Altar – Sardines and my Dad’. “This artwork translates Tori Derricotte’s poem (My Dad and Sardines) through food photography, portraying a daughter’s reconciliation with the memory of her deceased father,” says Louhani. “A damaged cake symbolises her brokenness, forming a healing food altar with his sardine, cracker, and onion ritual, uniting father and daughter through remembrance and peace.”
The winners of the competition’s 27 categories were revealed by renowned Italian chef and food writer Gennaro Contaldo at the Mall Galleries, London, on Tuesday 2 June at an awards evening gathering stars of the food and arts worlds.
“These Awards highlight the power of photography to tell food stories from around the world,” says Dave Samuels, Brand Director of Tenderstem® Bimi® Broccolini and headline sponsor of the Awards. “The remarkable images remind us of the essential role food plays in communities across the globe – through growing, harvesting, cooking, eating, celebrating and surviving. Whatever changes the world goes through, food remains central to our lives.”
This year’s global judging panel, chaired by legendary food photographer, David Loftus, includes: Jan Hendrick van der Westhuizen, Michelin Starred Chef and Restaurateur, Tom Athron, CEO, Fortnum & Mason and Rein Skullerud, Senior Photographer & Photo Editor, World Food Programme and Jamie Oliver, Chef, Restaurateur and Food Campaigner.
A free-to-enter exhibition of all 203 finalist images will premiere at the Mall Galleries, London, running from Wednesday 3 June to Sunday 7 June. A selection of the images hand-picked by Fortnum & Mason will be displayed at their iconic store on Piccadilly from Tuesday 9 June.
To see the online gallery of all the 2026 finalists, visit www.worldfoodphotographyawards.com
Entries for the 2027 edition of the competition will open later this year in September.
