If there are two things which can bring people together, it’s a good cause, or good food. Well, at the Listowel Food Fair, attendees won’t have to choose between the two. This year’s fair is a feast for both foodies and sustainability enthusiasts alike. The lineup is set to be mouthwatering, starting with an opening banquet from the world renowned Darina Allen.
The fair will kick off with The Listowel Food Fair Awards, in which up and coming stars will be given their flowers, as well as the handing out of Lifetime Achievement Awards. The festival will have a much more pronounced focus around health, well-being and sustainability this time around, hosting seminars on breast cancer awareness and gut-health.
The festival’s focus on sustainability will be on full display on November 10th at one its key seminars, “Sustainability and Food in Tourism”. This seminar will gather experts and influencers in the industry such as Grainne Kelliher, the Sustainability Subcommittee Chair for Kerry Tourism Industry Federation. The panel of speakers will address topics such as how to make the production of food in the tourism industry more sustainable and addressing sustainability throughout the tourism supply chain.
We are anticipating plenty of insights and ideas on how to proceed with a greener industry from this one! The festivals chairman is the former Minister of State for Agriculture, Jimmy Deenihan, who has been leading the charge on the issue of sustainable food practices for years.
It will be more than talks and presentations of course, this is a food festival after-all. Attendees can expect to see local craft, design, and food producers setting up shop in the Food and Craft Hall. The festival seeks to use this as a vessel to promote local businesses while also promoting sustainable practices.
A spotlight will be on Food Tourism more generally at the festival, with the aim of attracting more visitors to help the Irish Artisinal Food scene flourish. The festival will look to promote food experiences to embody local culture.
While the delicious food and the capturing of taste buds will be front and centre at the festival, the ultimate aim is about the county’s commitment to preserving its local heritage and promoting sustainable practices which aid in doing so.
If you’re into exploring Kerry’s food scene and keen on sustainable practices, Listowel Food Fair 2023 is where you need to be!
For more info and the full schedule, head over to the Listowel Food Fair’s official website or view their programme here.