An awards ceremony to celebrate the best in organic food is now open for entries.

The 2017 Best of Organic Market (BOOM) awards were set by the Soil Association to celebrate the very best in organic products and places to eat.

This year Rosie Birkett, the food writer and author, will be the celebrity ambassador for the awards ceremony held at London's iconic Market Hall on Wednesday, July 5.

Entries for the competition opened on Monday, February 6 and all entries will be judged by a panel of experts between May 2 and May 5.

The BOOM awards celebrate the people and businesses working hard to give us organic food.

Every entry into the competition will be judged by an independent panel of well-known experts in good food and the awards also include categories for the growing range of places organic food is available.

The public can also nominate their organic heroes, the people who really make a difference every day, and all organic food and drink businesses are encouraged to enter.

The awards will provide a platform for all businesses looking to profile their organic ranges as well as an opportunity to see who's who in organic.

Clare McDermott, business development director for the Soil Association Certification, said: "The 2017 BOOMs are going to be bigger and better, the organic market is constantly growing and more and more people are looking for and talking about organic.

"With hundreds of new products launched last year alone, this is our chance to really make some noise about organic.

"We've got the fantastic Rosie Birkett, great sponsors and an even bigger panel of judges including food writers, bloggers and chefs - I can't wait for this year."

Rosie Birkett said: "Organic food is something I am really passionate about, I always try to cook and prepare my dishes with the best possible ingredients.

"There are now so many amazing organic foods on offer which are readily available to everyone and I can't wait to see and try some of the best at this year's BOOMs.

"The awards are certainly shaping up to be the most varied and interesting yet, with new categories and some really exciting judges to be announced.

"I'm particularly excited about the Nation's Favourite Award - its a category open to the public to nominate their favourite organic product.

"I'll be revealing more over on my website and social media pages in the coming months so watch this space."

There are 25 different categories in this years event, including best organic fresh produce, best of organic confectionery product, best organic box scheme and best organic market blogger.

Anyone who may wish to learn more information, or to enter into the awards, can do so at soilassociation.org/organic-living/the-boom-awards-2017/