FOOD, GLORIOUS BRITISH FOOD!

British Food Fortnight

18th September – 3rd October 2010

 

“We love British Food Fortnight!”

Dave Myers & Simon King, BBC’s ‘Hairy Bikers’celebrity chefs

The ninth British Food Fortnight started las weekend.  Running from 18th September to 3rd October, the next two weeks sees the biggest ever promotion of British food on our shores. Sure Start Children’s Centres, universities, the Army, Cabinet Office, BBC, Harrods, St. Pancras International train station, John Lewis, St Paul’s Cathedral and the National Trust are just some of the diverse establishments taking part this year. Highlights include:

• ON YOUR MARKS, GET SET, GO!...this year’s event is a warm-up for 2012 when the dates of British Food Fortnight will change, for one year only, to run at the same time as the London Olympics. Shops, pubs and restaurants are responding to the challenge by trial running patriotic British food promotions in preparation for welcoming the world to Britain. So expect to see everyone go for gold on menus and shop-shelves!

• MORE BRITISH FOOD PROMOTIONS THAN EVER BEFORE…a record nine of the largest food service organisations, led by ARAMARK, eight major pub groups led by Young’s, all the chef associations, the National Trust and the Youth Hostel Association are all taking part so there will be an abundance of British food on menus during the two weeks. The public sector is also supporting with major hospitals, school catering services and even the Cabinet Office planning special menus. And on the high street, hundreds of shops will be flying the Union Jack with tastings, meet-the-producer events and special offers on British food, led by Budgens official sponsor of the event.

• GROWN HERE, NOT FLOWN HERE - THE PUBLIC’S FAVOURITE ‘BUY BRITISH’ SLOGAN IS ANNOUNCED…in the build-up to the Fortnight, members of the public have been asked to vote for the slogan that they think best promotes British food. The winning slogan -‘Grown here, not flown here’- is now available as downloadable stickers on http://lovebritishfood.co.uk/blogcategory/promotional-material/.

• BRIITSH ON A BUDGET: UNIVERSITIES AND SURE START CENTRES TAKE PART FOR THE FIRST TIME… British Food Fortnight coincides with university Freshers’ Fairs where students are the forgotten generation in the food debate. More than 20 universities across Britain are rising to the challenge with British Food Fortnight promotions – in conjunction with the Department of Health’s 5 A DAY programme - in student cafes and canteens; stalls at Freshers’ Fairs promoting the healthy benefits of British seasonal food; and cooking demonstrations of simple recipes for students.

British Food Fortnight’s long established initiative sending chefs into schools to teach children how to cook is expanding into Sure Start Children’s Centres. Parents using the centres are being taught how to cook, where to buy healthy food and how to incorporate 5 A DAY into their family’s meals leading up to a British Food Fortnight Feast during the event. The activity is being trialled in eight centres across the country and courses are already oversubscribed.

• EAT YOUR WAY AROUND BRITAIN… more opportunities than ever before for people to enjoy British food with food festivals in Horsham, York, Cardiff, Cambridge, Dorset, East Suffolk, Hungerford, Luton, Devon, Nantwich, Isle of Man, Abergavenny, Cornwall, Manchester, Hastings, Alnwick, Kent, Norfolk, Newbury, Melton Mowbray, Rutland, Leicestershire, Brighton and Buckinghamshire; foraging walks, food trails and fungi forays; a Harvest Swap Shop; fruit and vegetable shows; wild night feasts; a Giant Beanstalk competition for children; Battle of the Bangers competition between butchers; a Moveable Feast with courses at different restaurants; a Union Jack coloured meal promotion; a challenge to cook 5,000 British breakfasts in 96 care homes for the elderly; Plot to Plate cooking demonstrations; Meet the Farmer events, school trips to farms and even a British menu for animals in a zoo!

• SCHOOLS COMPETE TO COOK FOR ROYALTY AND THE HAIRY BIKERS…this year’s British Food Fortnight School Challenge is the biggest yet. Secondary school pupils are being challenged to design and cook a meal based on recipes that would have been used in their school’s part of the country by previous generations. The winning school will be invited to London to cook their chosen meal for HRH The Duchess of Cornwall and the Hairy Bikers. And there is something for little ones too: every primary school taking part will receive a free DVD showing them how milk is produced. All they have to do is design the ultimate school smoothie; children’s TV presenter, Michaela Strachan is the judge.

• WHY IS THE EVENT SO PARTICULARLY EXCITING THIS YEAR? Commenting on the huge amount of activity this year, organiser Alexia Robinson says: “This year’s British Food Fortnight is a rallying cry for shops, pubs, restaurants and councils to start planning their Olympic promotions now so that their customers can feast on British food as they cheer our medal hopes to the winning line! The eyes of the world will be on Britain in 2012 and patriotism will be at fever-pitch. Food and sport go hand in hand and we want British food to be at the heart of everyone’s Olympic celebrations. So come on Britain, give us a flavour of what is to come!”

For further information and details of specific events taking place across the country see www.lovebritishfood.co.uk