Peter Levy To Open Beverley Food Festival 2011

Beverley Town Council is once again preparing all the ingredients for the next Beverley Food Festival.  This year the event will take place on Sunday 2nd October and will be officially opened by Peter Levy of BBC Look North.

This time there will be an emphasis on why it is important to support local food producers.  Mayor of Beverley, Cllr Peter Astell, explained:

“In the current economic climate, it is vital that small and locally based food producers receive support, whether it is morally, by spreading the word about their businesses or purchasing from them.  Beverley is renowned for its quality restaurants, cafes and public houses offering a wonderful array of local food.”

“Beverley Town Council is proud to showcase the wide variety of local food and drink businesses in the East Riding of Yorkshire, at the Beverley Food Festival’’

The  ever popular ‘Beverley Local Food Awards’ will be judged and awarded at the event in the following categories,  best jam, pickle, sausage, dairy, drink, pie, cakes, meat and fish dish. The Beverley Food Festival – Local Food Awards celebrate the diversity and skills that are prevalent in the local food industry.  The winners will be awarded at the Food Festival, displaying their prize winning produce.

We are very grateful to Peter Levy from BBC Look North who will be opening the event; he will also be joined later on in the day by Jonathan Parker and other presenters from BBC Radio Humberside.  They will demonstrate their cookery skills in the challenge of a “Ready, Steady, Cook” style competition with our local chefs.

Helen Watson, Town Clerk and Food Festival co-ordinator said:

“As with previous events all the popular elements will be back, such as the 200-seater Food Theatre Marquee, where top local chefs will be carrying out cookery demonstrations throughout the day.”

“There will also be 80 stalls selling a wide range of produce local to East Yorkshire, street entertainment and a charity barbecue to raise funds for the Mayoral Charities.”

“We hope this will be another fun food event for all the family.  It is also our aim that it will support the town both socially and economically.”

“A new attraction this year is the Lemgo – Beverley twinning cookery challenge, with a well known chef from Lemgo and the chairman of the Lemgo Twinning Association, cooking with Beverley chefs.   Beverley has so much to offer and we hope to attract visitors to the festival from all over the region.”

The Beverley Food Festival 2011 takes place on Sunday 2nd October 2011 in the Market Place and is free to attend (including the Cookery Theatre Marquee).

The event opening at 9:00 am (official opening by Peter Levy at 9.30am in the Marquee) until 4.30 pm.