Member Article

New-look for Northallerton’s fifth Homegrown Food Festival

North Yorkshire’s biggest free food and live music festival returns next month with a host of new chefs and a range of new supporters.

Northallerton’s Homegrown Food Festival is this year celebrating its fifth year following a record attendance in 2015 with over 6000 visitors enjoying local bands, top chefs and a range of locally produced food and drinks.

This year’s Homegrown Food Festival will take place on Sunday June 26th between 10am and 5pm on the Applegarth Park behind Northallerton High Street and will feature a new chef line-up in the Food Theatre.

Joining Simon Crannage from Swinton Park, who returns for his second appearance at the festival thanks to his popularity, will be Dave Russell from the Buck Inn at Maunby near Thirsk, Tristan Prudden from The Garden Rooms at Tennant’s in Leyburn, Sarah Muir from The Arches Cookery School at Grinkle Park Farm near Saltburn, Harrison Barraclough from The George at Wath near Ripon and Misba Ellahi from Ooty’s in Stokesley.

The Homegrown Food Festival has also announced that its chosen charity for this year is Herriot Hospice Homecare, which provides free care to patients in their own homes across Hambleton and Richmondshire with services including befriending, respite sitting, overnight care, therapy services and bereavement counselling. The charity was established in 1992 for local people and aims to help meet the needs of patients and carers affected by any life-limiting illness.

The Homegrown Food Festival, which has grown to be North Yorkshire’s biggest free food and live music event and showcases local producers, international street food, local musicians and offers ideas for growing food at home, is organised by a small committee of volunteers who have worked over the last five years to encourage the community to embrace locally-sourced food and drink and support small producers.

This year’s festival has a range of sponsors including the Kerfoot Group and Wall’s Brewery. In addition, grants have been secured from Northallerton Town Council and Councillor David Blades, from Hambleton District Council, who has donated around £3,000 to the Homegrown Festival as part of the North Yorkshire County Council Locality Budget.

Over 100 local producers will be taking part in this year’s event with some of the confirmed names including the Angel’s Share, Amos and Welsh, Artemis Brew, Brymoor Ice-cream, the Churro Company, the Clucking Pig, El Kantina, Garth Cottage Herbs and Zetland Wine Store.

Other activities at the free event include the popular Tipple Tent serving locally-brewed beers, spirits and wines, a Kids’ Kitchen with fun, interactive cookery workshops for children, two stages of live, local music and the Grow Zone where the ‘Inspiration Shed’ will host local enthusiasts to encourage people to grow their own fruit, vegetables and herbs.

One of the organisers, Sally Anderson, said: “We can’t believe that every year the Homegrown Food Festival continues to grow in popularity with visitors from not just Northallerton and the surrounding villages but from towns including Helmsley, Easingwold, Guisborough, Redcar and Middlesbrough. It’s a fantastic showcase for Northallerton and North Yorkshire food producers.

“We wanted to offer something new this year so we have re-vamped the Food Theatre with a real variety of different chefs from all over North Yorkshire and we hope to make it even more exciting than last year with more announcements to follow before the big day at the end of June.”

Councillor David Blades said: “I am very happy to help the festival as it is such a good community event which is free and reaches so many people.”

Leanne Hardcastle from Herriot Hospice Homecare said: “Our amazing team covers around 1000sq miles and serves the area’s most remote rural communities, providing hospice care in an individual’s home. We work in partnership with local hospitals, doctors, nurses and social services and we’re part of the Community Palliative Care Team but we are a charity and without the support of local people we would struggle to survive. We are so pleased to be the Homegrown Food Festival’s chosen charity for 2016.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Anna Addison Associates .