Savour the flavour of Herefordshire

The mouth-watering Flavours of Herefordshire will go on show at this year's Herefordshire Food Festival, over the weekend of October 25/26.

An annual highlight for a county aspiring to Slow Food status, it also presents visitors with the opportunity to meet more than 100 local producers who rear, grow, make and sell some of the finest produce in the area.

But that is just one ingredient in a packed and lively two-day programme which is now featured in a comprehensive booklet, as well as on the website http://www.herefordshirefoodfestival.com/.

Cookery demonstrations using only the finest local produce, a "Back from the Brink" display by the Marcher Apple Network, a special Festival Food Trail and appearance of pantomime characters for younger visitors, talks and tastings, farmer's market, street theatre, the Herefordshire Bee Keepers Association's annual honey show, and the appearance of TV's Hairy Bikers will all add to the flavour of the event.

Herefordshire-based Tyrrells, meanwhile, will use the Food Festival not only to launch their latest ale & cheese flavour of potato chips, featuring Dorothy Goodbody's Ale, but also their own brand of vodka.

Organisers of the event are once again promoting the Food Festival as a place to "Love it, live it, try it…" - not to mention, an early Christmas shopping opportunity.

"Visitors to the festival will also be amongst the first to discover some real 'insider tips' to eating-out, and where to find some of the very best local produce, in Herefordshire - following the announcement on Friday, October 24, of all of the winners of this year's Flavours of Herefordshire competition," said Jane Lewis, Herefordshire Council's cultural services manager.

"Now in its tenth year, the competition was one of the very first schemes in Britain to recognise and reward the use and promotion of local produce.

"It's now widely viewed as one of the finest examples of how an area can celebrate its regional flavours," added Jane.

Festival admission prices (http://www.herefordshirefoodfestival.com/) are adults £5, concessions £4.50, under 14s £1, and children under 3 free.

Copies of the Herefordshire Food Festival leaflet can be obtained free of charge by telephoning 01432-260621. For further details, visit http://www.visitherefordshire.co.uk/.