It’s not long to go until Food Connections 2015 and we have so many exciting events planned which we can’t wait to tell you about! The full programme will be released at the end of March, but in the meantime, here’s a little flavour of what’s to come.
The programme of events is divided into six themes: land and growing, feasting and festivities, get cooking, brain food, families and wellbeing. As the flagship food event for Bristol 2015 European Green Capital, many of the events will address the serious social, environmental and economic challenges we face in feeding our growing population against a backdrop of depleting resources.
Food Connections is supported by First Great Western, who have committed to stocking regional food-producers across their train services – a fantastic initiative!
Kicking off with the BBC Food and Farming Awards on April 30th, celebrity chefs like Cyrus Toliwada, Richard Corrigan and Angela Hartnett will be in town to celebrate the best of British food and the people who grow, make and supply it.
Events to inspire people to ‘get cooking’ will take place in demo kitchens around the city, including talks with household names, such as Rick Stein, Sophie Grigson and Thomasina Miers. The Connected Kitchen – the event’s demo kitchen at Bristol’s harbourside – will be next to the ‘Best of the West’ producers market, with chefs making the best of fresh, local produce.
Food Connections’ ‘land and growing’ events will dig deep to discover how food is grown, why soil is important, and the impacts of our food production on the natural environment. Food Connections will celebrate the produce available on our doorstep while offering plenty of practical advice to help people grow their own food at home.
The GROW Festival, supported by Riverford, will be popping-up in the city-centre over the May Bank Holiday weekend. Linking people and planet, The GROW Festival will offer a wide range of activities, talks and workshops on topics such as: growing plants in small spaces, urban bee keeping, guerrilla gardening and much more.
As part of the ‘land and growing’ programme, Food Connections has also teamed up with Incredible Edible to inspire the people of Bristol to transform their front gardens with edible plants and flowers.
The BBC will have a big presence at the festival again this year, with a programme of special events over the May Bank Holiday weekend in the IMAX theatre. As well as live recordings of well-loved BBC programmes, there will be a search for new culinary TV talent and the BBC’s Natural History Unit will be sharing weird, wonderful and disgusting stories of the food they’ve come across on their intrepid expeditions!
Throughout the nine days of Food Connections, ‘feasting and festivities’ will turn the entire city into one huge celebration of good food. Thousands of people will break bread together at feasts of all shapes and sizes, from a Festival of Spice in Easton to a Fair Trade Gala Dinner cooked by Casamia’s Michelin-starred chefs for special guests like Allegra McAvedy.
Food for thought will also be in abundance with a ‘brain food’ programme featuring an early morning Coffee Rave to fire up the brain cells; an ‘Organoleptic Odyssey’ exploring the science of our senses, and a careers fair hosted by Kate Hawkings and Tim Hayward, exploring the pleasures and pitfalls of a life in food.
In a Dragon’s Den style event, aspiring and ambitious food producers from across the South West will pitch their products to a panel of experts for a chance to win outstanding prizes from The Seed Fund and First Great Western.
As part of the ‘families’ programme, Love Food Festival will run a Kids Cookery Pod, and a city-wide campaign to find the Young Chef, Young Baker and Young Grower of the Year is already underway.
Meanwhile, over at the BBC, broadcaster and children’s writer Michael Rosen will ask, ‘Why is a bun a bun?’ as he discovers how ingredients, food and dishes got their names for Radio 4’s Word of Mouth programme.
And this is just a little glimpse of things to come. With hundreds of events taking place all over the city, you’ll do more than just sit back and observe. Food Connections is all about rolling your sleeves up and getting hands on with the food we eat!