The producer was recognised for its slow-cooked duck legs, which won the Ready to Eat (Poultry) category of the awards.

Research company Nielsen surveyed more than 14,000 consumers for the country’s largest independent survey of household consumer innovation, which reviews new products against criteria such as trial performance, value for money and overall satisfaction.

“Our slow-cooked duck legs have been a really good product for us in the supermarkets,” Luv-a-Duck Chief Executive Ron Jenkins said.

“As a company, we’re in a sound position. We’ve got really strong market share.”

Duck products are distributed across the country from the company’s processing centre at Nhill.

“For us it’s about trying to grow acceptance and usage of duck,” Mr Jenkins said.

“That takes time and we’re always trying to do better.

“Five to six years ago the average amount of duck consumed per person in Australia per year was between 500 and 600-grams. Now it’s about 1.1-kilograms.

“That may not seem like a great deal when compared to chicken, which is about 40-kilograms per person, but it has more than doubled.”

Mr Jenkins said the company would not try and bully its way into the hearts and minds, or stomachs, of consumers.

“The majority of our business is still food service providers such as restaurants,” he said.

“But we have a strong base in supermarkets.

“We’re hoping for orderly, steady growth, rather than stellar growth.”

A total of 46 winners were included in the 2016 Product of the Year Awards.

Product of the Year Director Sarah Connelly said she was delighted with the range and overall quality of the innovations presented.

“Brands and private label products from the supermarket chains are really stepping up to meet consumers’ appetite for new products which are useful and relevant to them,” she said.

Ms Connelly said winning Product of the Year was a huge stamp of approval for shoppers.

“Shoppers can rest assured that these products have been voted for by people just like them, and whether they are buying large household appliances, beauty products or everyday grocery items – that all the guess work has already been done,” she said.