PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. / NEW YORK — June 2026 — Backyard Buffalo is proud to announce that four of its products have been named winners in the 2026 Good Food Awards, with one additional product named a finalist.
Backyard Buffalo’s 2026 Good Food Awards winning products are Cardamom Shrikhand, Chakka, Key Lime Pie Shrikhand, and Carrot Pickles. The company’s Pickled Jalapeños were also recognized as a finalist.
The winning products join a distinguished group of 242 winning products from 198 makers recognized for excellence in taste, quality, and responsible production. Chosen from a field of more than 1,200 entries through a blind tasting, the winners represent some of the most exceptional, consciously crafted products in American good food.
Backyard Buffalo’s recognition reflects the heart of the company’s work: everyday Indian food made with real ingredients, bold flavor, and deep cultural roots. The company’s winning dairy products are rooted in the Indian tradition of cultured dairy. Shrikhand is a strained yogurt dessert — rich, creamy, tangy, and naturally high in protein. Backyard Buffalo’s Cardamom Shrikhand honors the classic Indian flavor of cardamom, while Key Lime Pie Shrikhand brings a Florida twist to the traditional dessert. Chakka, the strained yogurt base used to make shrikhand, reflects the careful process behind the company’s cultured dairy line.
The company’s Carrot Pickles and finalist Pickled Jalapeños showcase another side of Backyard Buffalo’s kitchen: bright, spiced, Indian-style pickles that bring crunch, heat, tang, and flavor to everyday meals.
The Good Food Awards recognition builds on Backyard Buffalo’s growing awards momentum across cultured dairy, pickles, chutneys, and pantry staples. The company’s cultured dairy line has also earned recognition at WCCC, with Lemon Curd Shrikhand receiving Silver / 2nd Place and Mango Lassi receiving 3rd Place. In 2025, Backyard Buffalo’s Cardamom Granola and Cilantro Chutney were also recognized by the International Flavor Awards, earning 2nd Place and 3rd Place, respectively.
“We are so honored to have four products recognized as winners by the Good Food Awards, and to have our Pickled Jalapeños named a finalist,” said Punita Patel, founder of Backyard Buffalo. “These foods come straight from the kind of Indian home kitchen I grew up with — cultured yogurt, pickles, spices, chutneys, and food made to nourish people every day. To have our shrikhand, chakka, lassi, pickles, granola, and chutney recognized nationally means so much for our small Florida company.”
View the full list of winners here: https://goodfoodfdn.org/awards/winners/2026/.
“This year’s winners capture the vibrancy of America’s good food community,” said Mary Beth Vultee, SVP of Membership at SFA. “We’re honored to support these exceptional makers and carry forward the values that have long defined the Good Food Awards.”
Backyard Buffalo products are available locally through farmers markets, grocery partners, pickup, delivery, and select wholesale accounts in Northeast Florida. Customers can find Backyard Buffalo at farmers markets including Riverside Arts Market, Atlantic Beach Farmers Market, and the St. Augustine Amphitheatre Farmers Market, as well as select local retailers including Native Sun, Grassroots, Diane’s, 1748 Bakehouse, Ward’s Supermarket in Gainesville, and other local partners.
This year’s Good Food Award winners will be honored at a celebration on Saturday, June 27 in New York City, the evening before the summer Good Food Mercantile. Tickets to attend the celebration may be purchased for $150 at https://app.swapcard.com/login/event/good-food-celebration/registration.
The Good Food Mercantile, co-located with SFA’s Summer Fancy Food Show, will take place on Sunday, June 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Javits Center, River Pavilion. Good Food Qualified makers will sample their products for retailers, chefs, buyers, and other industry tastemakers who are passionate about good food.
Access to the Good Food Mercantile NYC is included with registration for the Summer Fancy Food Show.
Media Contact
Backyard Buffalo
581 N. Wilderness Trail
Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida 32082
[email protected]
Cell:314-560-8823
BackyardBuffalo.com
Recent Recognition
- 2026 Good Food Awards Winner: Cardamom Shrikhand
- 2026 Good Food Awards Winner: Chakka
- 2026 Good Food Awards Winner: Key Lime Pie Shrikhand
- 2026 Good Food Awards Winner: Carrot Pickles
- 2026 Good Food Awards Finalist: Pickled Jalapeños
- WCCC Silver / 2nd Place: Lemon Curd Shrikhand
- WCCC 3rd Place: Mango Lassi
- 2025 International Flavor Awards 2nd Place: Cardamom Granola
- 2025 International Flavor Awards 3rd Place: Cilantro Chutney
About Backyard Buffalo
Backyard Buffalo is a Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida-based food company making everyday Indian food rooted in home cooking, nourishment, and bold flavor. Founded by Punita Patel, Backyard Buffalo began as a small family-run kitchen and has grown into a local favorite known for ready-to-heat Indian meals, cultured dairy desserts, mango lassi, granola, chutneys, pickles, and sauces. The company’s products are sold through farmers markets, local grocery partners, pickup, delivery, and select wholesale accounts across Northeast Florida.
About the Specialty Food Association
The Specialty Food Association (SFA) was founded in 1952 and is the not-for-profit trade association of the $219-billion specialty food industry. Representing more than 4,200 businesses worldwide, SFA champions industry participation and success for a diverse community of makers, buyers, importers, distributors, and service providers by producing events, programs, and year-round resources and education. SFA owns and operates the Summer Fancy Food Show, Winter FancyFaire*, and the sofi™ Awards, which have honored excellence in specialty food and beverage annually since 1972. SFA also oversees the Good Food Mercantile, Good Food Qualification, and Good Food Awards, celebrating tasty, authentic, responsibly crafted food and the people behind it. The Good Food Awards Seal, found on winning products, assures consumers they’ve discovered something exceptionally delicious that also supports sustainability and social good. Find out more at Specialtyfood.com, and connect with SFA on LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.