The winners of the AQUA 2017 New Product Awards were chosen by a panel of highly respected aquatic retail judges, and were presented with their honours at a special dinner attended by over 700 guests.

The judges chose the winners of nine catergories from more than 100 new products entered.

Their decisions took into account a number of guideline criteria such as product innovation, design, quality, packaging and value for money.

The judges agreed that the New Product Showcase had produced a high calibre of entries with a tremendous amount of innovation. They were pleased to see such a wide range of products, and felt the majority of items on display showed some great innovation.

Here is a full list of the winners together with the judges’ comments:

POS/Merchandising/Support

Winner: Mobile Aquatic Display System

Entered by: Beaver Plants

Judges said: This product makes self-shopping for the customer a lot easier. It’s neat and tidy, easy to maintain, and a lot of thought has gone into the display system.

Reptile

Winner: BioPod Terra

Entered by: BioPod

Judges said: The winning product stood out in this category. It has amazing features, including LED lighting and smart phone technology, and looks like a piece of furniture that integrates well into the home. It’s at the top-end of the market but is good value, and elevates terrariums on to the same level as aquariums.

Pond Pumps

Winner: Blagdon Liberty Pond Oygenator

Entered by: Blagdon

Judges said: Being solar powered with a battery back-up, this product is very eco-friendly. It has a multi-use function – for example it can be used in the transportation of fish. It also has good customer information and point of sale.

Pond Filters

Winner: EazyPod UV Automatic

Entered by: Evolution Aqua

Judges said: It is an excellent compact unit with good price points. This self-cleaning, mechanical and biological filter system for garden ponds has the added benefit of built-in UV.

Pond Food, Care & Accessories

Winner: Laser Guard

Entered by: Velda BV

Judges said: This is an improved way of dealing with a major problem – protecting pond fish against herons with green laser beams, flashes of lights and sounds.

Aquaria & Furniture

Winner: BioPod Aqua

Entered by: BioPod

Judges said: This new generation of aqua/terraria is adaptable, being suitable for both fish and reptiles. It has amazing features and fits perfectly into the home environment.

Freshwater Equipment

Winner: ZA BL-2 Breeding Box

Entered by: CeramicNature

Judges said: A lot of thought has gone into the design, making it very unique. This breeding box can also be used as an isolation tank for sick or aggressive fish.

Aquarium Food Care & Accessories

Winner: Corydoras Sticks 80g

Entered by: Natures Grub

Judges said: The winning product is sure to become a bestseller because of its great price point, making it an easy add-on sale. It’s a pro-biotic insect meal made in-house, containing over 20% insect meal as well as crustacean and aquatic plant meal.

Marine Equipment

Winner: ALR1 Algae Light Reactor

Entered by: ITC Aquatics

Judges said: This light reactor range is innovative, impressively designed, practical and represents good value for money.