The 2008 Listowel Food Fair

The 2008 Listowel Food Fair will take place from the 6th - 9th November and promises to bring the town to life with culinary delights for this the 14th year of the festival.

2008 Events
Events on this years programme include special guest Darina Allen of Ballymaloe House and Cookery School. Darina will officially launch the Fair and provide a cookery demonstration incorporation the local artisan food products from the local farmers market. The launch event will include a taste of local shellfish reception together with complimentary wine.

Consultant Dietician Aveen Bannon will give a nutrition and healthy eating seminar on the key nutritional issues in the Irish diet. Recent studies all focus on the increasing levels of obesity in Ireland but despite us growing in size as a nation we are still nutrition deplete. The key nutritional issues in Ireland include inadequate iron in the diet, calcium, omega-3 fatty acids and more. Aveen plans to address these dietary issues and advise on how we can change these statistics by changing our eating habits and attitudes to food. Aveen will help you to gain an understanding of the nuts and bolts of nutrition and will offer practical advice on everything from the importance of iron intake to healthy and nutritional meal ideas.

The National Farmhouse Cheese competition
The National Farmhouse Cheese competition takes place on Friday morning with cheese guru Juliet Harbutt of the British Cheese Awards in attendance together with Teagasc experts Eddie O’Neill and Sara McSweeney.

This year sees the launch of the Irish Food Book of the Year Competition with a prize fund of €1,000 for the best food book of the past year. The winners of the Bord Bia Quality Mark Schools competition will be announced on Friday evening with prizes for individual students, teachers- sponsored by Caterassist, and participating schools.

This competition aims to highlight the Quality Mark and promote its awareness among consumers. The Homebaker of the Year competition this year focuses on a Bown Soda Bread making competition to be judged by culinary experts from the local Tralee Institute of Technology Hotel and Catering Department.

This competition is sponsored by Caterassist.Saturday events include cake decorating and bread making classes and morning and afternoon children’s workshops, events in local supermarkets, the good food dining circle in local restaurants and a beer tasting event.

Sunday’s annual Food and Craft market takes place from 10am to 5.30pm and the fair comes to a close with a wine tasting evening. For more information contact 068 23433 or contact Listowel Food Fair.