Dill has been shortlisted for AI Startup of the Year at the Wales Startup Awards 2025. Dill automates food labelling and compliance for food businesses, and the nomination recognises the role AI now plays in that.
It spans the full range of what operators deal with — Food-to-Go, stock rotation, retail convenience and hospitality. The aim is simple: make compliance easier, save time, and help operations scale safely.
Solving real labelling problems with AI
Food businesses face a mix of regulatory pressure, staffing gaps and rising expectations around transparency. Natasha's Law — the UK Food Information Amendment requiring full ingredient and allergen labelling on all Prepacked for Direct Sale (PPDS) food — makes accurate, legible labels non-negotiable.
That's the problem Dill was built for. The platform automates allergen labelling, ingredient formatting, stock rotation labelling and retail shelf-edge ticketing.
The cloud-based tools let operators:
- Generate compliant Food-to-Go labels with full ingredients, allergens and expiry information.
- Create and manage stock rotation labels to cut waste, improve food safety and support FIFO.
- Scale label templates across sites with central control and local customisation.
- Use AI to generate and position label elements, so design isn't a bottleneck.
AI-powered label workflow and template generation
What earned the nomination is the labelling engine. From a few prompts or product descriptions, Dill can generate:
- Label layouts and templates.
- Element positioning — barcode, allergen statement, use-by date.
- Pre-validated outputs that line up with industry guidelines.
Whether it's one sandwich label or a full menu of PPDS items, operators can build, test and deploy labels in seconds — without leaning on manual setup or a design team.
Who uses Dill
Dill is used by operators from independents to multi-site chains, including:
- Atis — modern salad and grain bowl concept serving high-volume Food-to-Go daily.
- Busaba — Thai dining chain with efficient kitchen operations and branded labelling needs.
- Sushi Co — grab-and-go sushi counters where PPDS labelling and stock rotation are critical to freshness.
- Penny Petroleum — one of the UK's largest independent forecourt retailers, using Dill across its estate.
They use Dill for compliance, and for the confidence that labels are accurate, on-brand and in line with local and national rules.
Stock rotation and compliance
Stock rotation is central to food safety and waste reduction, but plenty of businesses still rely on handwritten labels and manual date checks. Dill automates it with day-dot labelling, scheduled print workflows and custom date logic per product.
For multi-site operators that means fewer errors, better shelf-life tracking, and easier HACCP and EHO compliance — without eating into staff time at peak.
What's next
The nomination reflects the progress so far, but there's more to build. We're rolling out more label intelligence, data integration and API-first infrastructure, with the goal of making solid food labelling available to every business — from high-street cafés and school canteens to multi-site QSR brands.
See the full list of Wales Startup Awards 2025 finalists: Finalists Announced – Business News Wales.