Described by judges as someone who has managed to "ticked all boxes", Diane Foreman, has been named the Ernst & Young New Zealand Entrepreneur of the Year at an announcement which came at an awards function last night. Having received the prestigious honor, Foreman will now represent New Zealand at the Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, to be held in Monte Carlo in 2010.

At the final presentation ceremony, Chief Judge David Johnson said that Foreman, "Ticked all the boxes and a couple of little extras. We were impressed with the diversity of it, I mean, a lot of people go through perhaps one industry, she is in heath and property and obviously in food with New Zealand Natural".

Foreman reportedly impressively stood out against some other pretty strong candidates, and presented herself exceptionally well. Her current company Emerald Group is said to be responsible for putting New Zealand Natural on the world ice cream map. The firm currently has 680 stores in 21 countries.