The 2026 World Food Photography Awards have been announced, with British photographer Jo Kearney taking the overall prize for her evocative portrait of a woman pouring tea at the Khoja Obi Garm sanatorium in Tajikistan. The image, set in a Soviet-era health spa nestled in the Hissar Mountains near Dushanbe, captures a solitary moment that moved Caroline Kenyon, founder of the awards, to tears.
“There is so much to see and so much to feel in this image,” Kenyon said in a statement. “She has seen much in life, we are sure, but holds her head high.” The sanatorium, one of the few still operating in the former Soviet republic, sits on radon-infused hot springs. Though radon is toxic, it is believed to have medicinal benefits in small doses, and visitors continue to flock there for short breaks in the radioactive pools and steam rooms, as well as healthy meals and moments of calm.
A Global Lens on Food and Culture
Drawn from nearly 9,000 entries across more than 50 countries, this year’s awards feature a diverse array of images that explore the intersection of food, culture, and daily life. From rows of rickshaws overloaded with cabbage leaves in Bangladesh to a ‘family portrait’ of eggplants, the competition offers a rich visual narrative of how food shapes our world.
A free exhibition of all 203 finalist images is on display at London’s Mall Galleries through 7 June, before a selection of photos heads to the luxury department store Fortnum & Mason in Piccadilly. The awards, now in their 2026 edition, continue to highlight the work of photographers from across Europe and beyond, with categories ranging from street food to politics of food.
Category Winners
Among the category winners, Dutch photographer Marco Rutten won the ‘Bring Home the Harvest’ category with a dawn shot of fishermen hauling in their catch on the Hooghly River near Kolkata, India. Chinese photographer Pingyao Song took the ‘Champagne Taittinger Food for Celebration’ prize for a vibrant image of a Sichuan peppercorn festival organized by the Zouchuan Hotpot brand.
American photographer Kellie Carter won the Claire Aho Award for Women Photographers with ‘Granny’s Welcoming Gift of Love’, depicting an elderly woman offering fresh-baked goods. British photographer Serkan Doğus captured a shepherd guiding his flock down Mount Nemrut in eastern Turkey for the ‘Food in the Field’ category.
Indian teenager Indigo Larmour won the Jamie Oliver Youth Prize (ages 13-17) for a photo of devotees making offerings to the sun god Surya during Chhath Puja in West Bengal. French photographer Luke Carver took the Louis Jadot Wine Photographer of the Year (Produce) award for a point-of-view shot from inside a traditional Georgian qvevri during the autumn harvest.
Belgian photographer Glenn Vanderbeke won the ‘Politics of Food’ category with a portrait of a female miller covered in cornmeal dust at the Vocational Training Center Irebero in Rwanda. Australian photographer Kara Baird captured a tranquil moment in Kyoto’s Nishiki Market for the ‘Street Food’ prize. American photographer Daniel D. Kwak won the James Beard Foundation Photography Award for a portrait of a worker at Hadja Marley, a Senegalese restaurant in Brooklyn. Hungarian photographer Lehóczki Balázs took the Philip Harben Award for Food in Action.
The awards, which have grown in stature since their inception, continue to draw entries from across Europe and the world. For those unable to visit the London exhibition, a selection of photos will also be displayed at Fortnum & Mason, offering a taste of the visual feast that the competition has become.
