Quality Chekd Awards Program
Quality Chekd's award program recognizes its member dairies that go above and beyond their peers in a variety of categories. Recipients gain prestige within the organization and their service areas, highlighting their achievements in production, quality, marketing and customer service. Our major awards, The Irving B. Weber Award and the Production Excellence Award, are given to the top plants who achieve the highest ranking in various categories and are recognized by their peers as the ‘BEST OF THE BEST” within our organization.
All of the awards are presented at the QCS Leadership Conference and are based off the previous calendar year’s performance.
Irving B. Weber Award
This award represents the highest honor for overall quality throughout the Quality Chekd organization. Finalists are judged based on effective implementation of quality in all areas, from processes and products to customer service and satisfaction to a single plant location.
Production Excellence Award
This award recognizes outstanding processors in three categories: fluid milk, cultured dairy, and ice cream. The winner in each category will be decided based on selection criteria that includes a plant audit, evaluation of all plant processors and systems for assuring product quality evaluation results.
Merit Award
This award recognizes plants which have achieved outstanding quality performance based on product test results derived from the Quality Chekd Compliance Program throughout the program year. Merit Award compliance levels have been established well above Organization compliance levels, creating a significant but rewarding challenge.
Nog-Off Contest Program
Eggnog and Light Eggnog products are submitted by participants and presented to panelists from both Merieux NutriSciences Laboratory and Quality Chekd/QCS Purchasing staff for evaluation. Scoring of the eggnog products is based strictly on sensory perception of flavor, body and appearance.
Orange Juice (from Concentrate) Contest
Orange juice samples are submitted by participants and are judged by a panel of USDA lab personnel skilled in the sensory evaluation of juice products. Scoring is based on the USDA's Standards for Grades of Orange Juice, "from concentrate" (per USDA Orange Juice Table VIII, page 14 of the Standard). Only the top three samples are ranked based on the average flavor point score (between 36 and 40 points) and by the panel consensus.
World Dairy Expo Participation & Recognition
Quality Chekd/QCS Purchasing members are encouraged to participate in the annual World Dairy Expo (WDE) Product Judging. This event provides members with the opportunity to submit products from a number of categories and to be bench-marked against not only peers within the Quality Chekd organization, but also against dairy competitors nationwide. The WDE winners are notified and awards are issued by the Wisconsin Dairy Products Association.
Those Quality Chekd/QCS Purchasing members who rank among the top three awards in each product category are recognized for this achievement at the annual Quality Chekd Leadership Conference. Note: The World Dairy Expo judging has no bearing on the determination of finalists or winners of the Weber or Production Excellence Awards.