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Nivea won for Nivea Visage Beauty Boost, Visage Age-Reversal and Body Night Renewal Cream in the Best Facial, Best Anti-Age and Best Body Skincare categories respectively.

Heinz picked up its two for Top Down Ketchup and its Soup Cups.

Pringles Dippers and Gillette Mach 3 razors were among the other winners of the inaugural UK Product of the Year Awards held at the Science Museum last night.

Mr Muscle Multi-Task, Harpic Ready Brush and Compeed Liquid Bandages won in the household cleaning and health category. Special K Yoghurty won Best Cereal, Strawberry Actimel won Best Drink and Heinz Soup Cups won Best Heat & Serve Food.

Veet Bladeless Razor Kit won Best Female Hair Removal, Pantene Pro-V won Best Haircare, Right Guard and Gillette Vertical Spray won Best Deodorant and Always Ultra won Best Feminine Care.

Other awards went to Iams for best pet food, Pampers Active Fit for Best Baby Care and Vanish Oxi Action Max for Best Stain Remover.

Winning entries are entitled to feature the Product of the Year logo on all advertising, point of sale and communications material for one year, which according to the event's organisers gives an average sales lift of 10%.

Global market research company Taylor Nelson Sofres was chosen to run the postal survey, after holding the Product of the Year business in Spain and the Czech Republic.

The 12,000 strong consumer survey marks the largest representative consumer vote TNS has conducted in the UK to date.

TNS asked people aged 16 and over in more than 5,000 UK households to rate a shortlist of new products that were widely available throughout the country between October and November 2004.

This is the first UK Product of the Year award. It has been running for more than 15 years in France and more recently in Spain and the Czech Republic.

Additional launches planned next year for Poland, Israel and Portugal, with Germany and Greece also in the planning stages.

Channel 4 signed up as the lead sponsor for this year's awards. It joins the other sponsors including Marketing, TNS and Waitrose Food Illustrated.

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