Food 'n' Drink – Food and Drink news |

The 2011 World of Food Event at the weekend helped to bring together different communities from all around Bolton by having food from all across the world. The event held in Great Lever at the Nightingale Centre was for different cultures to interact and promote healthy eating.

Over 20 different cultures were represented in the annual affair that had been held in the town for over 15 years, with each year bringing more diversification of cultures. All the food was vegetarian so all could enjoy and there was plenty to go around with something for everyone from Turkish cake to pumpkin soup Caribbean style that was enjoyed by the more than 250 people who came to the event.

They enjoyed great entertainment for around the world that included Turkish singing, salsa and Kosovan dancing as well as Chinese boxing. The Bolton Gathering of Organic Growers arranged the event along with the Greenhouse Project community, the Westhoughton group Kensa with a hand from NHS Bolton and the Bolton Community College.

A new location is being planned by the organizers for next year’s event in order for as many local residents as possible to take part and enjoy the festivities.

Invited to participate in the Real Food Festival are small-scale producers, farmers, chefs, cooks, community groups, processors and nutritionists to be held July 29-31 throughout the Sunshine Coast Hinterland. Julie Shelton, the Festival co-director called for stallholders, presenters, sponsors and anyone that wants to get involved to let her know. Saying they would love to hear from those that love clean, good, fair food.

It is all food that is good for us and that tastes good and uses production and farming processes that do not harm the environment, achieving a fair return for the producer and still being affordable to the customer.

A celebration about the variety that the Sunshine Coast producers, restaurants and manufacturers have on offer is what the Real Food Festival is all about. The Festival will showcase a lot of current interest in low-processed nutrient dense foods, says Ms. Shelton.

Good quality local produce is being sought by people in order to prepare their families meals with nourishment rather than just making them full. The hope is support for Sunshine Coast food will be shown from the food and beverage industry. The people that are behind the food will be available to visitors since there will be stallholders, chefs, producer and other experts that will total more than eighty in all.

This years food and drink festival in Bolton will take place this year over the August bank holiday weekend, form the 26^th-29^th. Since it’s inception in 2006, it has grown steadily in popularity, and the fifth festival in 2010 was hailed as a mighty success by the council, and attracted over 75,000 people. Many of these came to see the celebrity chefs, but this year’s line up has yet to be announced.

A spokesman for the council said that the plans for this year’s festival were well under way, and these years would be the biggest and best ever. He added that there were many new things being added this year and that the details would be revealed over the next few weeks. There are rumours about which celebrity chefs will be attending this year, but everyone will have to wait for the official announcement.

As a result of the festival’s success, the Town was selected and held a very successful International Market last weekend. The market, which lasted for 4 days, saw traders from countries such as China, Mexico and India selling their wares alongside vendors from Europe. This has greatly raised the profile of the forth coming festival even more, and hospitality establishments report enquiries from right across the UK.

After its record breaking series in 2010, Dragons’ Den is preparing to open for business once again, giving entrepreneurs from across the country the chance to realise their ambitions and make their business dreams come true. If you’re genuinely seeking investment for your business idea or invention, we’d like to hear from you.

Last year saw more entrepreneurs than ever before enter the Den and face the Dragons, with 17 businesses convincing the multi-millionaire investors that they were worthy of their cash. Some of the most successful business ideas last series came from the food and drink and home-ware sector with one of the most memorable pitches from the series from 24 year-old, Kirsty Henshaw, who, having developed her healthy frozen desserts for her young son, needed £65,000 to expand the business. After an emotional encounter, the single mum’s hard work and determination paid off as Duncan Bannatyne and Peter Jones joined forces to give her business a much needed cash injection. Kirsty says, with the help of her Dragon partners, her Freedom products have been stocked in over 2000 supermarkets nationwide and sales figures have hit £360,000. She predicts she’ll make £1million in sales in her first year alone.

All the financiers were impressed by inventors Richard Blakesley and Chris Barnardo who pitched their magical remote control and sparked a fervent bidding war. In the end it was a tactical Duncan Bannatyne who fought off his rivals and shook hands with the duo. Antiques expert Patrick van der Vorst sought investment in his valuation website and was delighted to secure the backing of two Dragons, Theo Paphitis and Deborah Meaden. Patrick says that since the Den his turnover has increased five fold and his customer base has risen to more than 23,000.

Perhaps the most famous entrepreneur to secure investment in the Den was Levi Roots, who in 2007 secured investment in his secret recipe, Reggae Reggae sauce. Just 4 weeks after his appearance on the programme his Dragon investors helped him launch his product in major supermarkets all over the UK. Now a household name, his range includes; table sauces, cooking sauces and ready meals, and has also secured a licensing deal with one of the world’s largest frozen food manufacturers, has several hit books under his belt, and presented his own cookery series. Levi says he sold six million bottles of sauce last year alone and now, thanks to the Dragons, has a business empire valued in the millions,

Of course not everyone secures investment in the Den but that doesn’t stop determined entrepreneurs going on to prove the Dragons wrong. In 2009, Paul Ward came into the Den with his MRSA killing laundry detergent, after receiving an offer but failing to agree terms, he walked away empty-handed. Paul says his company now has a turnover of £1.4million. In 2006, Rob Law pitched his children’s luggage range, Trunki, but after a legendary but disastrous encounter with Theo Paphitis, failed to earn any of the Dragons’ cash. Since then, Rob says he has grown the business into a global success story, selling 750,000 products to 62 countries worldwide. In the New Year’s Honours List he was awarded an MBE for his services to business.

The rules are simple: entrepreneurs ask for a cash investment in return for equity in their business. However, they must get at least the amount they ask for or they will walk away with nothing. The Dragons are prepared to listen to a pitch for any kind of business but they must be convinced that it requires investment and will make money. Ideas, businesses and products that have previously gained financial backing in the Den have demonstrated one or more of the following: unique selling point, scalability, clear route to market and a planned exit strategy.

More information: www.bbc.co.uk/dragonsden

High above the city, Robert Corrigan, the Irish chef, treated special diners to a wonderful meal in London.  It was a celebration of the opening of the London Restaurant Festival.  This particular meal feature jelly of lobster, grouse pie, smoked eel, granny smith parfait, cheese, petit fours, and was held at the London Eye in an eaterie 135 metres above ground.

Celebrity chefs will serve dinners to 10 diners every night over the course of the two-week festival.  The diners paid 10,000 pounds each to be treated by the likes of Angela Hartnett and Gordon Ramsay.  The charity for the homeless, StreetSmart, shall benefit from the dinners.

Literally hundreds of restaurants will participate.  The festival features talks, food and film nights, a quiz featuring AA Gill and Anne Robinson, road trips, and debates.  There is a Gourmet Walking Tour that will jaunt about Soho October 9 and move on to Shoreditch on the 16^th.

The festival’s founder, Simon Davis, believes that London has the largest number of quality chefs anywhere and says the idea of the festival is to celebrate the lively restaurant scene, which has prospered despite economic times.

He says that the recession did not change the restaurants but adapted them to modern times.  Diners still enjoy eating out and having people wait on them in a quality of style and choice of ambience.

The third and final event on the Tesco Enjoy the Taste of Scotland road show in Glasgow last Saturday attracted over 5,000 visitors.  It was a real opportunity to showcase the best in Scottish food and drink, both in terms of cooking talent as well as products.

Audiences were treated to  a range of Cookery demonstrations from chefs at The Sisters restaurants, Hotel du Vin, Red Onion, Cail Bruich, Two Fat Ladies, Mushtaqs, The Glasgow Restaurateurs Association.  There were also tastings with Tesco’s Home Economist and some Whisky cocktails with Gordon & Macphail.

As well as live demonstrations, the event included a large collaboration of local suppliers who were keen to showcase their local produce available in Tesco, including delicious cakes and biscuits from Tunnocks, Scotland’s No 1 pastry brand Bells Bakers, award winning Seriously Strong cheddar from Lactalis McLelland, childhood favourites Millions Sweets, creamy treats from Robert Wiseman Dairies, thirst quenching spring water from Highland Spring and the famous Irn Bru from AG Barr.

The 2010 Melksham Food and Drink Festival

The 2010 Melksham Food and Drink Festival will get underway on 25^th June with a Premier Night at Melksham Assembly Hall.  An introduction to the festival will provide refreshments and details about events during the coming days to the finale on 4^th July. There will be sure to be plenty of exquisite food and fine wines to taste over the course of the festival for both locals and tourists to enjoy.

Following the introduction, there will be a screening of the Oscar-nominated film ‘Julie & Julia’, about the famous foodies Julia Child and Julie Powell.

Some of the other events taking place at different venues and times will include a cookery demonstration by Martin Blunos, an Open Day at the Sandridge Farm in Bromham, a Family Fun Day at the Kings Park Children’s Centre and a Sainsburys Wine Tasting Event in the Town Hall.

There will also be a Chocolate Tasting Evening and a Safari Supper that will take guests to some of the finest restaurants in Melksham in the course of the dinner, to name just a few of the various events.

All in all, it promises to be a delightful two weeks packed with delicious treats and exciting activities for children and adults.  The focus is on local produce and private recipes, with the festival supported and sponsored by Waitrose.  Festival planners are expecting to build on the huge success of the first annual Food and Drink Festival that took place in May last year.