ENTER THE COMPETITION
Entry for the 2027 competition opens 1st January
KEY DATES & INFORMATION
1st December 2026: Downloadable Entry Forms go live. Scroll down to for all entry forms (live in December 2026)
1st January 2027: Competition opens. Full list of Collection Points go live on the website (Collection Points will not accept jars before 1st January 2027)
22rd January: Collection Points Close. Jars can still be posted direct to Dalemain to arrive before close of entry.
1st February at 5pm: Entry Closes. Any jars that arrive after this will not be eligible to win but will be judged and 100% of the Homemade entry fee will still go to Hospice.
End February: Announcement of Artisan Winner and Artisan Gold, Silver and Bronze Award winners.
24th April: Twenty Second Anniversary Marmalade Festival at Dalemain Mansion, announcement of Homemade winner.
May: Homemade results posted. Contact us if you haven’t received your results by the end of May.
Not sure how to enter? How to list your ingredients? What lid you can use? Head to the bottom of this page for a full list of FAQ’s
The Homemade Competition
This is a competition for the worlds best Homemade marmalade. There are 15 categories ensuring that there is something for every marmalade maker, from the expert home-cook to adventurous first-timer. Entries come from all over the world and the jars are assessed by experienced judges, with well tested assessment criteria.
The best in show will produced and sold at Dalemain and Fortnum & Masons, London, with a donation being made to charity per jar.
Every penny of your entry fee for the home-made awards goes towards supporting Hospice care, both in the UK and around the world and we are very grateful to our sponsors Fortnum & Mason, Adfin, Westmorland Farmshop and Lycetts who have enabled us to have raised more than £350,000 for charity since we began.
Please Read Carefully Before Entering:
If you sell your marmalade: If you produce and sell your marmalade commercially you should enter the Artisan Competition not the Homemade Competition.
The Hotel and B & B Category: If you sell more than 100 units annually online or in a shop then you should enter the Artisan Competition.
Prisons Marmalade Category: if you are a Prison or organisation within the justice system here is a document with all the info you might need.
Collection Points: If you don’t want to post your jar you can deliver them to a collection point from Scotland to New York. A full list of collection points can be found here. Please do not deliver to collection points outside of the specified dates.
Payment : Please get in touch directly with the office at Dalemain if you have any issue with payment for your entry. If you are based abroad, please do not send us a non UK cheque as we cannot cash these at our local bank.
The Artisan Competition
This is a competition is for people who make their marmalade using the traditional open-pan method and sell their products commercially. We look for all types of marmalade.
We want to support independent producers and work to enhance the quality of marmalade. Winning an Artisan Award denotes a marmalade of incredibly high quality and past winners have seen huge increases in their sales with a Dalemain roundel on their jar. All Artisan entries are judged by an expert panel of industry experts.
Roundels: Bronze, Silver and Gold roundels will be available to purchase as soon as results are announced in February.
Production for Fortnum & Mason: Selected winners are sold by Fortnum & Mason in Piccadilly. If your marmalade is chosen by Fortnums you will be asked to produce a large number of jars (200-500 units) for sale. If you do not feel this is possible or would prefer not to be considered for this please make a note of this on your entry form.
The Hotel and B & B’s: This is a category within the Homemade Competition BUT If you sell more than 100 units per year or sell regularly online or in a shop then you should enter the Artisan Competition. Please note you are only eligible to buy roundels if you win an award in the Artisan Competition.
Payment: The entry fee should be paid via Paypal: @Dalemain “marmalade@dalemain.com” - ensure your name is clear and the paypal receipt is with entry form with your jars.
Other ways to pay: All UK Entrants should pay by Paypal. If for any reason you cannot pay by Paypal, you can pay by cheque or by direct bank transfer.
Please do not send us a non UK cheque if paying from abroad as we cannot cash these at our local bank. You can send cash instead.
Contact us Email: marmalade@dalemain.com or tel. +44 (0) 1768486450.
Marmalade Judging Tips
Our judges look for a selection of markers when tasting your jars which are:
🍊A Good Jelly like Set: make sure that you keep pips and peel in during cooking as this provides natural pectin (make sure to pick out the pips before you decant your marmalade into jars). You can add Pectin Additive separately if listed on a recipe that you have found online. Be wary of overuse of pectin which might affect the flavour.
🍊Texture: The peel should be properly cooked through, soft to bite into and surrounded by the jelly set. If you prefer your marmalade to be a clear set it is also ok to remove all pith and peel before decanting your marmalade into jars so it is just a clear jelly.
🍊 Appearance: the marmalade should have a bright appearance with distribution of peel throughout the jar. For Dark & Chunky Marmalade this does not apply- the addition of treacle will make your marmalade dark in colour. Be careful not to overcook treacle as your marmalade will taste burnt and the jar will become darkly opaque.
🍊 Jar Fill: The jars must be filled with marmalade to the top of the jar, just below, but not touching, the lid. There is no need to use wax discs if your jar is correctly filled.
🍊Aroma: It should smell great with any additional ingredients being noticeable in scent e.g. if it has lavender in it you should be able to smell the lavender.
🍊 Taste: if you have added any additional ingredients (additions could be anything at all from pears to tea) there should be a noticeable taste of that ingredient alongside the citrus you have used. There should be harmony of ingredients, one should not overpower another.
Legal definition of marmalade
Everybody has their own version of marmalade. Essentially, the dominant ingredient has to be citrus but to fit in with UK Trading Standards, this is the legal definition per The Jam and Similar Products (England) Regulations 2003.
A mixture, brought to a suitable gelled consistency, of water, sugars and fruit pulp, fruit purée, fruit juice, fruit peel or aqueous extract of fruit or any combination thereof, in every case obtained from citrus fruit, such that the quantity of citrus fruit used for every 1000 grams of the finished product is not less than 200 grams, of which not less than 75 grams is obtained from the endocarp.
Jelly marmalade is a marmalade which contains no insoluble matter except possibly for small quantities of finely sliced peel.
Marmalade may contain the following and still be legally sold under the description “marmalade”:
Honey as a total or partial substitute for sugars
Essential oils of citrus fruits
Spirits, wine and liqueur wine, nuts, aromatic herbs, spices, vanilla and vanilla extract
If your product contains additional ingredients, you should contact your local Trading Standards for assistance with labelling.
For more information, please refer to the Jam and Similar Products Regulations and Food Information Regulations.
FAQs
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You need to post your jar to:
Homemade Awards
OR Artisan Awards
Dalemain Mansion
Dalemain
Penrith
Cumbria
CA11 0HB -
Please send it by 5pm on the 2nd February 2026.
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Go to our Collection Points page for a full list.
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The Marmalade Festival will take place on Saturday 25th April 2026 at Dalemain Mansion.
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Yes, you can hand deliver your jars to Dalemain Mansion, from Monday-Thursday, 9am-5pm.
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Artisan award winners can purchase roundels to use on their jars for three years. The order form will be distributed to winners once the results are announced. These are a marketing tool to aid small businesses therefore homemade entrants do not qualify to purchase them and do not need them.
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Yes, you can enter the same marmalade in different categories. Please send one jar per number of categories you would like to enter.
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Yes, of course! You can collect your jar from Dalemain on the day of the festival and in the following week until the Friday at 5pm after the festival. Unfortunately, we are not able to post your jars back to you.
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Many jars are collected by their maker from Dalemain - either at the Marmalade Festival or in the week following until the Friday after the festival. As many of the remaining jars possible after this time are donated to the community, the local charities, rugby club, rotary club and a number of churches, which in turn raises more money for Hospice at Home.
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Find the entry forms here. If the download link doesn’t work, we can also email you one.
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Homemade
The category winners and Best in Show will be informed in February. All results will then be posted following the Festival. Due to the large number of entries and postal delays, you may not receive your results until mid-May.
Artisan
All Gold and Double Gold winners will be informed in February, all other entries will receive their results via email in March. Certificates will be posted after that.
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Your jar should be large enough that multiple judges can taste your preserve but it does not need to be large. We recommend using a standard to small jar size which also will make your postage costs lower.
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Yes, you can send a jar in with a patterned lid, as long as there are no logos or branding your jar will be entered into the competition. Make sure to wash the jar thoroughly before reusing it for your marmalade! If you are an Artisan maker be sure that one of your jars has no identifying labels or logos so it can be judged blind.
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As this is a competition raising money for charity ran by volunteers processing thousands of jars, we are unable to email every entrant to confirm their jar has arrived. You will receive a notification if your jar has arrived damaged so that you can submit a replacement if you have one. If you would like to be sure your parcel has arrived at Dalemain be sure to ask for your parcel to be tracked when you take it to the post.
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Yes, we you are very welcome to send your donation to a local hospice instead, please print their name and address on the bottom of the entry form and send proof of this donation in lieu of payment.
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It is a £10.00 entry fee per jar with the entire entry fee going to charity.
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There is no limit to the number of jars you enter. Please remember to enclose the correct entry fee, select the appropriate categories on the entry form and label your jars as described in the terms and conditions.
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You should enter this category under the name of the Prison or organisation within the Justice system. We encourage groups to cook together to make their entry!
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Our email is marmalade@dalemain.com or by telephone on 01768486450
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You just need to list your ingredients so that our judges know what is in your jar e.g. Lemons, Seville Oranges, Sugar, Water
