Slow Food Festival Celebrates Return With New Local Product Launches

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Slow Food Festival celebrates return with new local product launches

Northern Ireland’s only Slow Food Festival, organised by Derry City and Strabane District Council, will celebrate its return to Guildhall Square next month with the launch of two new high quality local food and drink products as part of the major grassroots culinary showcase which attracted a bumper 25,000 visitors to the city last year.

The new home-grown products – Walled City Brewery’s eagerly anticipated ‘1689’ Siege beer and Breslin Butchers’ Tirkeeran Black Pudding which have both been skilfully developed with the expertise of prominent local chef Brian McDermott in his capacity as manager of the Foodovation Centre at North West Regional College – will be unveiled during the two-day Festival which is taking place on Saturday October 7th and Sunday October 8th 2017 from 12 noon until 6pm.

Internationally renowned eco-chef and food writer Tom Hunt will be the special guest at this year’s family-friendly, free admission event held during Slow Food Week to celebrate the best of local, clean and fair food, which is not mass produced. The Festival is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) NI Regional Food Programme, supported by Slow Food NI and sponsored by Supervalu.

The Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District, Councillor Maoliosa McHugh, warmly welcomed the return of the second Slow Food Festival and said he was delighted that Council was continuing to build on the success of last year’s event and the legacy of Northern Ireland Year of Food and Drink 2016 when the North West scooped a number of major industry awards and the overall title of NI’s ‘Destination Delicious’.

This year’s Slow Food activity, centred in and around an impressive clear sided and roofed marquee, is once again expected to have foodies flocking to Guildhall Square for the return of the Harvest Fayre attended by around 20 artisan producers from throughout the North West and further afield; live cooking demos on the main stage; and new to this year’s event, a Craft Beer Garden where visitors can sample some uniquely local brews including Walled City Brewery’s new beer, inspired by an ancient ale recipe dating back to the Siege of Derry.

Festival-goers will be completely spoiled for choice with a wide range of fresh meat, charcuterie, fish, fruit, veg, cheeses, breads, desserts, preserves and ice-cream including a local vegan brand as well as some traditional Irish heritage dishes to savour in the marquee and from selected vendors in Guildhall Square.

Councillor McHugh added: “Derry City and Strabane District is once again leading the way as an international food tourism destination. This Festival provides a unique showcase for local provenance with the opportunity for people to talk to the people who actually produce what is on offer and hear the story behind it. This is very much in keeping with the ethos of Slow Food’s core principles of quality, flavoursome and healthy food; production that does not harm the environment; and fair pay and conditions for producers.

“As well as all the culinary activity and natural buzz surrounding this event, there will also be live music and singing by popular local artists to add to the festival atmosphere and plenty of free children’s activities including a petting farm and smoothie bike machine to keep families entertained during the two-day event.”

Jennifer O’Donnell, Tourism Manager with Derry City and Strabane District Council, explained that the Slow Food Festival embraces the aims and objectives of the global, grassroots movement founded in Italy in 1989 with supporters in over 150 countries, which links the pleasure of food with a commitment to local communities and the environment.

She continued: “We have a fantastic line-up of local artisan producers, craft brewers and talented local and celebrity chefs joining us for what we hope will be another very successful festival event taking place to celebrate Slow Food Week, as well as two exciting new local product launches to whet the appetites of foodie fans.

“We are particularly delighted to have attracted award-winning eco-chef and ‘Root to Fruit eating’ expert Tom Hunt, food writer, campaigner, author of The Natural Cook and ambassador for the Soil Association and Fair Trade Foundation who will be sharing tips on how to get more from your food with less waste during his cookery demonstrations in the marquee on both October 7th and 8th.”

Paula McIntyre, Director of Slow Food NI and Slow Food UK Chef Alliance member, said she was also delighted to be involved again in this year’s event. “Now more than ever it’s vital that we support local farmers, producers and growers. The Slow Food ethos of ‘good, clean and fair’ is practised by all the exhibitors – whether it’s a local cheese maker, oyster farmer, sourdough pizza maker or charcuterie producer, with a myriad in between, they follow the same principles.

“I’m looking forward to compering and cooking with Brian McDermott, a strong Slow Food supporter and welcoming Tom Hunt, the eco-chef to the festival. Tom has a restaurant in Bristol with a zero waste policy and he’s steeped in the farm to fork movement. In a world where mass production and fast food is the norm it’s great that people will be able to see how food should be and celebrate our fantastic producers and chefs”.

For further information on the Slow Food Festival including details of exhibitors and timetable for cookery demos and talks, musical entertainment and children’s activities in Guildhall Square from 12 noon until 6pm on October 7th and 8th, visit www.derrystrabane.com/food

Mac Ivors Cider Celebrates Winning National Trust Fine Farm Food Award

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Food NI member MacIvor’s Cider  has won a National Trust Fine Farm Food Awards presented at BBC Countryfile Live at Blenheim Palace.

Mac Ivors Cider Co produces its Traditional Dry Cider, Medium Cider and Plum and Ginger Cider at its orchards opposite Ardress House in County Armagh.

The awards, which are now in their 12th year, celebrate the very best produce from the Trust’s 1,500 tenant farmers and estates. Producers participating look after more than 500,000 acres of grazed pasture, orchards and arable farmland across the UK.

Greg MacNeice, a fifth generation apple grower, said his family planted their first apple orchard at Ardress in 1855, and, since then, have been nurturing and developing over 100 acres of orchards.

Speaking about winning the prestigious Fine Farm Food Award for the second time, Greg said: “We have been growing apples here at Ardress since 1855 but we have only been producing cider from here since 2011. As my father said we are caretakers of the land and we’re here to leave it in a better state than we found it and then pass it on to the next generation.

“We try and do that in everything that we do. For example we bring hives of bumblebees into the orchards and allow them to nest here.

“I set out to make a cider which was as close to a freshly pressed apple as it could possibly be. That was the scent and the smell of my childhood in the orchards. I wanted people to get that in a bottle if that was possible.

“The National Trust Fine Farm Food Awards allow people to get to know the tenant farmers and celebrate everything which the countryside offers and prove that sustainable food isn’t just better for nature but that it tastes better too.

“Everyone here is delighted to be recognised by the National Trust for the work we do and we are proud that our Traditional Dry Cider and Medium Cider have been awarded.

“Mac Ivors Cider is now on sale in many of the beautiful National Trust cafes in both Northern Ireland and Britain.”

Rob Macklin, Head of Food and Farming for the National Trust, said: “The standard of produce this year has been higher than ever before. It has been a pleasure for the judges to see producers, associated with National Trust land and coast, rising to the challenge of producing fine farm food. We were amazed at the standards of the nominations which show the highest standards of farming can deliver excellent produce and work hand in hand with nature. These awards recognise the very best producers from National Trust estates.”

Mac Ivors Cider Co’s ciders, and all products nominated, were not only assessed for taste but also against a range of environmental standards to guarantee the quality and origin of products alongside high levels of production.

CO ARMAGH CIDER LANDS AT BELFAST CITY AIRPORT

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Armagh-based Long Meadow Cider has been awarded an exclusive craft cider contract in the Bushmills Bar at George Best Belfast City Airport.

Long Meadow Cider’s contract with HMSHost International, the leading provider of food and beverage outlets in over 100 airports worldwide, was secured following the company’s Blossom Burst Cider beating over 70 local suppliers to be named Northern Ireland’s ‘Best’ local food and drink product in a competition launched by Belfast City Airport in partnership with Food NI earlier this year.

The Bushmills Bar and the recently rebranded St. George’s Market restaurant in the airport, both managed by HMSHost, will both stock the award-winning Blossom Burst flavour.

Peter McKeever, one of the Founders and Managing Directors at Long Meadow Cider, said:
“Having our Blossom Burst Cider named Northern Ireland’s ‘Best’ local food and drink product and receiving £30k of marketing support at Belfast City Airport has been a real turning point in our business, it has been the icing on the cake in what has been an incredible four years.

“As a small, family owned business, we never imagined getting to the finals, let alone winning! We are so grateful for the relationship we now have with the airport which has opened doors and has now led to our exclusive cider contract with HMSHost in Belfast.

“The first order was placed in mid-Summer with a second, larger, order placed the following week, and we believe this contract has the potential to be our biggest.

“Belfast City Airport welcomes approximately 2.7million passengers through its doors each year from domestic and international locations providing us with a considerable platform to showcase our product.

“Alongside the news that both Bushmills Bar and St. George’s Market will be stocking our cider, we launched our new Rhubarb and Honey flavour in July and it has surpassed all sales expectations.

“This new flavour is not only to celebrate our fourth year in business but also in response to demand for flavoured ciders.”

The company already exports to France, Mexico, Italy and the Republic of Ireland, and regularly receives international interest.

The McKeever family has been growing apples at Long Meadow Farm for three generations and all products are made from 100% natural Bramley apples, grown and harvested on the farm.

Alex Woodhouse, Hospitality Manager at HMSHost, said:
“Bottled cider is consistently one of the most popular selling bottled, alcoholic products in the Bushmills Bar and St. Georges Market at Belfast City Airport.

“Over the last number of years, we have focused on trying to create strong links with leading, local suppliers. Where we can work with local providers, we will.

“Long Meadow Cider has had a really successful few years and the feedback from our customers so far has been fantastic, so we’re delighted to work with Long Meadow as our exclusive craft cider partner in Belfast City Airport.”

Joanne Deighan, Commercial Manager at Belfast City Airport, said:
“At Belfast City Airport, we are passionate about championing and supporting local brands.

“Last year we facilitated a relationship between World Duty Free and Shortcross Gin which has resulted in the product being stocked in a number of its outlets in airports across the UK, including Belfast City Airport.

“Our search for Northern Ireland’s ‘Best’ local food and drink product in partnership with Food NI earlier this year allowed us to provide the winner, Long Meadow Cider, with £30k of on-site advertising and marketing support to promote its brand to our 2.7million passengers each year.

“With passengers travelling from across the UK, or further afield through our summer Aer Lingus routes or KLM’s daily service to Amsterdam, it is vital that our retail and product offering is of a high standard. To be able to provide local produce to these customers is fantastic and we’re thrilled to introduce Long Meadow Cider to our customers in the Bushmills Bar and St. George’s Market.”

Michele Shirlow, CEO of Food NI, said:
“The Belfast City Airport and Food NI competition was a fantastic platform for local food and drink producers from Northern Ireland, and the prize for Long Meadow Cider, which sees the brand promoted on a huge lightbox at the entrance to the airport, is a huge boost for the company.

“For this to have now extended to a contract with one of the leading providers of food and beverage outlets in airports worldwide is a real triumph, not only for Long Meadow Cider, but for innovation in local food and drink.

“I am over the moon to see companies such as Belfast City Airport and HMSHost working alongside suppliers and Food NI to ensure home-grown brands are championed and have a strong presence in front of local, domestic and international passengers.”

Food NI Making Waves In London Speciality Fine Food Fair

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Column by Michele Shirlow for Farm Week

Our strategic focus on promoting our food and drink and the companies which produce exceptional quality and innovative products in Great Britain moves onto another level next week in London.

As well as showcasing local companies, especially Great Taste Award winners, at the big Speciality Food Fair at Olympia, we will be hosting an event for some of the UK’s most influential food writers at a leading restaurant of celebrity chef Mark Hix.

The event is Food NI’s way of thanking food writers who have endorsed the food and drink from quality producers, many, I am delighted to say are among our members. It’s our way of showing how much we appreciate their interest and support and to encourage them to keep up the good work.

Our guests include such established and respected food journalists as Xanthe Clay, contributor to the Daily and Sunday Telegraph food pages, Pete Brown, world cider expert and author or many books on the subject, our very good friend Charles Campion, the MasterChef judge who contributes to so many publications including Speciality Food Magazine, and Lucas Hollweg, a chef who contributes to the likes of the Times. They’ve become regular visitors to these shores and have become firm friends of Northern Ireland.

We’ve been working very closely with UK and international food writers over many years. Building relationships with influential food experts is a key element in our strategy to increase awareness of our superb food and drink in Great Britain, easily our most important and successful marketplace.

It was immensely encouraging, for instance, to see a very warm and highly supportive exchange on social media last week between Jeremy Lee, an acclaimed chef at the high-end Quo Vadis restaurant in Soho, and NearyNogs Chocolates in Newry. He is using the chocolate in the desserts he’s now creating at the restaurant for high-end diners.

Lee visited Northern Ireland last May as a guest of Food NI. It is his first visit to Northern Ireland and is another excellent example of the successful relationship building undertaken by Food NI on behalf of local food and drink companies.

The food writers also bring a wealth of knowledge and experience with them and generously provide advice to our companies in areas such as product enhancement and market opportunities. They bring to the industry here immense knowledge from visits to global markets, and we really do appreciate their support.

We’d certainly like to do more with food writers because we can offer easy access to the smaller companies who tend to provide the interesting people stories and innovative products that food writers seek. And developing these people stories is an important aspect of our Taste the Greatness action plan. We know them and understand what they need and what they want to achieve. This knowledge is based on the work we do with them on a regular basis.

Other food experts will be visiting our presentation at Speciality Food in Olympia, the UK’s biggest showplace for smaller food and drink companies.

Our participation at Speciality, a first for Food NI, is also being supported by many smaller companies, and we’ll be doing our utmost to assist and encourage them as they seek to influence the very many buyers from major retailers and independent delis at the show. Supported by Tourism Ireland and InvestNI it is a great opportunity to influence some of the 11,000 buyers expected to check in to visit the show.

It’s going to be a busy week for Food NI and for our member companies, a week which, I believe, will help increase awareness of their stories and products in Britain. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The Great ‘Comber Farmers’ Market’ Celebrates Baking

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 With the ‘Great British Bake Off’ back on air, on Thursday 7th September Comber Farmers’ Market will celebrate ‘Bread and Baking’ at the popular artisan food event.

Every month at Comber Farmers’ Market you will find a delicious and delectable selection of freshly make bread and baked goods with sodas and farls hot of the griddle from the Krazi Baker, a range of breads and sweet treats from Mangetout Deli, a variety of sourdough loaves from Go Yeast, home-baked biscuits and traybakes from Farm House Treats, focaccia and scones from the Poachers Pocket Deli and Linda’s Original Sticky Toffee Pudding.

The perfect accompaniment for the baked goods comes from the rest of the market with meats, jams, chutneys, tapenade and hummus.

Also on offer from the market’s local producers is fresh fish, granola, chocolate and mallows, flowers and plants, fruit and veg, iced coffee, cheese, fresh jersey milk ad free range eggs.

As well as having the very best fresh produce from across Northern Ireland at the award-winning artisan food event, Comber Farmers’ Market is a great morning out where visitors can meet new people and talk to the friendly bunch of traders before enjoying a morning tea in St Mary’s Church.

As the popularity of Comber Farmers’ Market grows, the town is quickly becoming one of Northern Ireland’s top food destinations, ‘The Home of Great Taste’.

Held in St Marys Church car park of Comber Square the first Thursday of every month from 9am to 1.30pm, Comber Farmers’ Market is well worth a visit.

Car parking is available in nearby public car parks, at Parkway on Killinchy Street and the car park of 1st Comber Presbyterian on High Street.

Find out more about the popular monthly food event at www.combermarket.co.uk or on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram.

Send Your Bread to London for World Bread Awards

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The World Bread Awards is a unique set of awards which not only celebrate the skill of bread-making at its most diverse and inspiring, but also seek to encourage and foster the art of baking both now and for the future generation.

This year’s awards will be judged at Cathedral Hall in September, with the closing date for entrants Wednesday 6th September.

The awards are open to all – artisan bread makers, small high street bakers, home bread-makers and child bakers.

Categories include: 

  1. Brook Food Sourdough
  2. Wholegrain
  3. Ciabatta
  4. Gluten Free
  5. Carr’s Flour Baguette
  6. Real Bread Campaign sponsored by Shipton Mill Bread
  7. Great British White
  8. Fruit
  9. Flatbread
  10. Irish Wheaten Loaf
  11. Speciality – Sweet
  12. Speciality – Savoury
  13. Muntons Malt Bread
  14. The Tiptree Showstopper
  15. Tiptree Patisserie Trainee Baker
  16. Home Baker – Open
  17. Home Baker – Sourdough
  18. KitchenAid – Young Baker
  19. People’s Choice

Full terms and entry requirements for each category can be found here.

If you would like to enter the World Bread Awards visit World Bread Awards – Enter then email Rachel Quigg at Food NI stating the categories you are entering and Food NI will coordinate with you to arrange delivery of your loaves to London.

Happy Baking!