Local Businesses Provide Food For Thought
at Inaugural Food Vale Festival

At the beginning of 2021, virtual attendees of the first ever Food Vale Festival were treated to a series of online events and inspiring stories from some of the Vale’s most sustainably-minded food businesses. 

The event, which took place online from 22nd March – 4th April 2021, brought people closer to more than 30 food producers and businesses from across the Vale, whilst highlighting opportunities to improve the local food system, post-Covid 19. 

The festival was organised by Food Vale, part of the Sustainable Food Places network - a partnership programme led by the Soil Association, Food Matters and Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming. It has received funding through the Vale of Glamorgan Council and Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which is funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.

A dedicated PR effort generated local media coverage in outlets including South Wales Argus, Barry & District News, Penarth Times, Penarth View, Cardiff Life, Wales 247 and Bro Radio - and helped to firmly establish Food Vale as a voice for local and sustainable food.

As part of the campaign, I teamed up with local freelancer Will Barker to commission three new films which would showcase some of the most inspiring local food stories from the local area; the films were shared on Food Vale’s social media channels throughout the festival period and have so far been viewed more than 5,000 times.

Cobbles Kitchen in Ogmore was one of the businesses featured; their film focuses on the theme of eating locally, but thinking globally. 

General Manager Owain George explained: “At Cobbles, using organic produce is very important to us, as is using local producers and seasonal ingredients, and minimising wastage. It can be overwhelming to think that small changes like this can have a bigger impact, but if each individual business or household is doing this, it has a huge snowball effect. If we were all moving towards making more sustainable food choices locally, it could have a huge impact globally.”

To view the Cobbles film in full, click here. 

Forage Farm Shop in Cowbridge was also featured - their film focuses on the benefit of supporting local producers and businesses. Matt Eales, head chef at Forage Kitchen, showcased some of these ingredients with a recipe of stuffed, roasted saddle of lamb with locally foraged herbs. 

He explained “It’s important to know where your food comes from, but sourcing ingredients locally also means you are supporting local businesses and growers, while benefiting from that expertise and passion. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship and we’re so lucky to be able to facilitate that here in the Vale.”

To view the full Forage film, click here.

The third film featured Cadogs Corner, a community café which uses donated FareShare food to provide wholesome meals for the café and provide cooking workshops and food parcels for vulnerable families. It was set up by parents and staff at Cadoxton Primary School to address isolation and food poverty, while offering opportunities for pupils and parents to learn new skills like cooking and food hygiene. 

Natasha Cockram, who runs Cadogs Corner, said, “We were thrilled to be part of the Food Vale festival, highlighting the importance of everyone having access to good food. For us, it’s also great to be able to show how communities in the Vale can work together to support each other in times of need.”

To view the full Cadog’s Corner film, click here.

Over the course of the two-week festival, Richard Shaw from Cooking Together also provided a number of affordable cookery demonstrations suitable for the whole family. Amy Greenfield from Awesome.Wales - the Vale’s first zero waste store – hosted a takeover of the Food Vale Twitter account, sharing her expertise on how to reduce waste in the home. There was also a virtual tour of Barry’s Community Garden, Gibby Green Fingers.

About Food Vale

Food Vale is part of the Sustainable Food Places network, a partnership programme led by the Soil Association, Food Matters and Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming.

To find out more, visit: https://foodvale.org.