The sun shone and the crowds came out for the 2017 Abergavenny Food Festival. Over the last 18 years, Abergavenny Food Festival has grown to become the largest, longest running food festival in Wales. The event enjoys a reputation as a place for chefs, food businesses, journalists, farmers and food producers to come together. The festival is known for being an inclusive and welcoming event, delivering a delicious opportunity for people from all walks of life to explore and learn about food.
Isobel Brown and Jeremy Bosanquet (Siluruan) from Usk, entertained the people in the streets. Isobel said: “It is not just all about food. We are busking to raide funds for the Blue Cross animal charity. The Abergavenny Food Festival is a great opportunity to promote this area of South Wales.”
Mr Bosanquet said: “We are a dynamic, acoustic duo that play an interesting mix of country, rock & blues covers and self penned songs. We available for gigs, festivals, weddings & other events.”
Jeremy Bosanquet also does ‘Tracks Though Time’ and this help to make history come alive with informative and entertaining heritage and history talks.
Through the programme of activities including product tastings, kids’ activities, masterclasses, hands-on cookery lessons and topical debates, the festival provides the inside track on food issues, offer new ideas about the future of our food and showcase rising stars emerging from the industry.
Aine Morris, Chief Executive for the Abergavenny Food Festival said: “We are absolutely delighted that the weather has perked up and we expect over 35,000 visitors to attend this event from all over the United Kingdom and Europe. We are proud to create and stage the festival every year. As a key historic market town, Abergavenny is uniquely and most suitably placed to host this annual event.”
The Festival prides itself on transforming the way people think about food, challenging and promoting new ideas: pushing the boundaries of current thinking and encouraging people to look differently at the source of their food.
Photographed are Victoria and Andrew Rossiter, of Rossiter Books, Monmouth, standing either side of Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, celebrity chef, television personality, journalist, food writer and campaigner on food and environmental issues. Hugh attended the event to perform book signing for his latest cooking book. Victoria said ‘We are huge fans of Hugh so are happy and proud that he joined us at Abergavenny food festival to support small independent businesses. Signed copies of his latest book will also be available until Christmas in our store in Monmouth and as a keen cook myself I wholeheartedly recommend it.’
Hugh’s River Cottage Veg Every Day! became the UK’s best-selling vegetable cookbook, Hugh was at Abergavenny meeting and greeting people and signing books. In his new much-anticipated follow-up, Hugh delivers more irresistible recipes, and this time, takes things one step further.
In this book he uses veg, fruit, wholegrains, nuts, seeds, spices and cold-pressed oils to explore the length and breadth of what can be achieved with natural, unprocessed plant foods. River Cottage Much More Veg! makes it clear that unadulterated ingredients are the very best building blocks for delicious and healthy meals.
The recipes are easy, utterly foolproof and delicious. All but a handful are gluten-free, and at least half the dishes require 20 minutes (or less) hands-on work time. With recipes such as Roast squash and chickpeas with spicy apricot sauce, Blackened cauliflower with pecans and tahini, Spiced beetroot, radicchio and orange traybake, Celeriac and seaweed miso broth, Seared summer cabbage with rosemary, chilli and capers, and Baked celery agrodolce.
Photographed (L-R): Amy Robinson, Ellen Harrison, Katharine Langley and Diane Thieme from Triodos Bank, based in Bristol. The bank proudly sponsors the food festival and provides business support to environmentally focussed business enterprises.
Simon Martin, marketing communications campaigner for Triodos stated: “The Abergavenny food festival is a wonderful opportunity to being together a mixture of producers and lovers of food to enjoy good food matched with sustainable farming, which is why Triodos Bank promotes and supports financing sustainable and healthy food production systems and is proud to support the festival.”
Emma Robinson (photographed) manages and runs Grosmont Wood Farm. She said: “We are trying to add value to milk and get the message across to the consumers that milk is and remains undervalued.” Emma was selling ‘raw milkshakes’ with pure products at the festival, a mixture of her fresh milk and fresh fruits. She said: “We have enhanced our business by selling quality produce directly to the customer from our farm, selling fresh milk of the day.”
Photographed (L-R): Helen Campbell, George Wiseman and Kristy Wiseman from the Tint Rebel brewing company. Helen said: “From humble beginnings of two men in a garage, Tiny Rebel, based in Newport, has become a bespoke brewing company with a brewery and three bars in the South Wales area. Being part of the festival community and a local company is something Tin rebel is proud of. I can think of no better way to spend and share a weekend that with the local South Wales community at the festival. We actively encourage everyone to come have a free sample our flagship ales; provided they are over 18 years old of course.”
Photographed are Molly Pike and Sian McCloy, who both work for Robert Price Kitchens in Abergavenny. Molly said: “Robert Price kitchens are proud to sponsor the market hall stage cooking challenge events once again at this fantastic local festival, with over 10 years of sponsoring events at the venue. Sian said: “It is the local produce which puts Abergavenny on the national stage and showcases such quality produce.”
Since its inception in 1999, the Abergavenny Food Festival has grown its audience from 3,000 visitors to become the largest food festival in Wales with more than 35,000 attendees every year, attracting big name brands and showcasing the very best food and drink from Wales and across.
NEWS & EVENTS 