Sir Ian Wood and his wife Lady Helen have been honoured for their charity work in the UK and Africa.
The Beacon Award was granted to Sir Ian, the chairman of The Wood Foundation, at a ceremony in London last night.
The awards recognise the impact of philanthropic work with J.K Rowling, Sir Tom Hunter and Sir Ronald Cohen honoured in the past.
The Wood Foundation aims to help people around the UK and the rest of the world improve themselves using knowledge of business and how it can benefit communities.
Sir Ian and his family have contributed more than £140 million to The Wood Foundation since it was established seven years ago.
The foundation supports more than 45,000 smallholder tea farmers in east Africa with an investment of £12.6m in training and production leading to significant yield increases.
In the UK, its youth project educates 20,000 people a year on the role of successful charities in their communities.
Sir Ian, the former chairman of the Wood Group, said: “On behalf of The Wood Foundation, we are honoured to be recognised with this prestigious award for philanthropy which reflects the commitment, quality and effort of some very fine people in the TWF staff, both in the UK and internationally.
“A lot of the world’s problems have arisen because our generation has stood by and let them happen. In this troubled and inequitable world, philanthropy is more important than ever.
“Generally people care but see the problem as too complex and somehow not really relevant to them.
“The message to young people must be that every one of us can help the less fortunate and needy in our communities, whether locally or overseas, by committing time, skills, knowledge and money.”