Colin Dennis, the retiring Director-General of Campden BRI, who was awarded a CBE in the Queen's New Year's Honours, received his award from the Queen at Buckingham Palace last Tuesday.

In his 20 years as Director-General at the food and drink research centre at Chipping Campden the business has grown from £2.5m in 1988 to over £18m in 2008, serving 2000 clients in over 60 countries.

Prof Dennis, who lives in Ilmington near Stratford, is a Deputy Lieutenant for Gloucestershire and a visiting professor at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester.

In 2001 he was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists in the USA and a Fellow of the International Academy of Food Science and Technology.