Notes from a Devon Kitchen

Slow Food Market comes to Topsham!

Topsham, Devon January 1, 2008 I'm very excited to report that the monthly Slow Food Devon Market will be transferring from Exeter Quay to Topsham Matthew’s Hall, with the first market set to take place on Sunday January 20th from 11am to 3pm.

If successful, the plan is to stage monthly markets, usually on the third Sunday of each month (with the exception in 2008 of Easter Sunday and Topsham Town Fayre week when it will be on the fourth Sunday).

There is at present only one other Slow Food Market in the UK (in Bristol), so it will be a great achievement and opportunity for the Topsham community to be able to host this.

Slow Food is a non-profit organisation and the market will be organised and run entirely on a non-profit basis. There will be stalls for up to 20 quality producers of artisan food and drink. Already there is huge interest in a Topsham Slow Food Market from an exciting range of quality producers and suppliers. All producers and suppliers must be members of Slow Food Devon, which means that they share Slow Food’s ideals, values and ethos. Slow Food Devon welcomes the participation of Topsham businesses who share these ideals and would like to join in.

An underlying purpose of the Slow Food Market is to inform, educate and learn as well as to provide an opportunity for suppliers and producers to sell. Taste Workshops will take place on a regular on-going programme during each market – with workshops to be held on the stage of the hall for a limited number of participants.There will be food to eat as well as to buy and take home so we hope the market will become a place where Topsham residents and visitors alike will come to gather and socialise in true Slow Food style, as well as to buy great food and drink to take home. Wines, ciders and beers will be available for sale for by the glass or bottle and there will be tables and chairs set up for people to relax and chat, eat and drink.

Slow Food Market at Topsham 2008 Dates

January 20th
February 17th
March 30th
April 20th
May 25th
June 15th
July 20th
August 24th
September 21st
October 19th
November 16th
December 21st

BENEFITS OF BRINGING THE SLOW FOOD MARKET TO TOPSHAM

The Slow Food Market will become a destination that attracts visitors into Topsham and this will increase trade to pubs, restaurants, tea shops and any other businesses who are open on Sundays
The Slow Food Market will enhance Topsham’s growing reputation as a food destination
As a community, Topsham will be supporting Slow Food’s underlying ideals: food that is good, clean and fair.
The Slow Food Market will introduce a new range of outstanding quality food and drink producers to Topsham once a month, to the benefit of residents and visitors alike.
A Slow Food ‘Food Trail’ can highlight Topsham’s own outstanding food and drink outlets – Topsham businesses that offer exceptional food and drink and who support Slow Food ideals and ethos
The Slow Food Market can become a regular focus of monthly activity on Sundays for the Topsham community
The Slow Food Market will seek to educate and inform about topical food matters through its ongoing program of Slow Food Taste Workshops
There is the further possibility that if Topsham embraces the Slow Food ideals, the town may have the opportunity to become one of very few prestigious designated Cittàslow – Slow Food towns (Ludlow is the first in the UK)
There will be opportunities for Slow Food Devon to get involved with other Topsham food and drink initiatives, perhaps a Topsham Food Festival in the summer?

ABOUT SLOW FOOD
Slow Food is a non-profit, eco-gastronomic member-supported organization. It was founded in 1989 in Bra, Italy to counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions, and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world. The idea caught on quickly, and the movement spread not only throughout Italy but also internationally.Today, there are over 80,000 Slow Food members all over the world. Slow Food members are further affiliated to their own national, regional and/or local Slow Food 'convivia', or groupings of individuals and businesses who support Slow Food's ideals. The Salone del Gusto takes place every two years in Turin and is probably the largest gathering of artisan food producers in the world. Terra Madre brings together food communities and individuals from the developing and developed worlds to help solve common problems and share experiences and knowledge.Our local convivium is Slow Food Devon, currently headed by Freddie Dudbridge.

To find out more about Slow Food or to join the movement, www.slowfood.com

SLOW FOOD PHILOSOPHY
Slow Food stands for good, clean and fair food. Slow Food believes that the food we eat should taste good; that it should be produced in a clean way that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health; and that food producers should receive fair compensation for their work.

As a journalist and writer, I have been involved with Slow Food for many years and am a founder international jury member for the Slow Food Award for Biodiversity.

If you have any questions about Slow Food or the Slow Food Market in Topsham, please feel free to call me on 01392 873778 or email marc@quaypress.com.

Marc Millon

email marc@quaypress.com