Events
Ballydehob Food Day
For about seven hours on Sunday the Community Hall in Ballydehob became a Mecca for anyone with an interest in food – from producing food, marketing food, adding value by processing food, to consuming food and examining the social, economic and political issues arising from the production, distribution and consumption of food.
The Ballydehob Local Food Production Day, an annual event, was the third of its kind.
A plethora of colourful stalls populated the main hall, including:
• Irish Countrywomen’s Association (ICA) stall
• A display of locally-grown grains by Madeline McKeever of Brown Envelope Seeds
• Permaculture with Graham Strouts from Kinsale Further Education College
• Several displays of edible seaweeds
• A mulitplicity of apple varieties grown by Paul McCormick and Jacinta French of Woodkerne Nurseries
• Information about Bantry House Country Courses
• Raffle
• Face-painting and arts & crafts for kids
• Big displays of vegetables by local organic producers
• Various cake and snack stalls
• A café providing the essential tea, coffee and herbal tea!
Talks and discussions held in the side hall included:
• Lord David Puttnam on “Climate Change & Food Security”
• Dr. Oliver Moore on “Turning a Farm into an Organic Food Business”
• Jean Perry on “The Basics of Composting”
• Paul McCormick and Jacinta French on “Growing Nut Trees in Ireland”
• Donnacha O’Callaghan on “Community Supported Agriculture – the story in Ballydehob”
• “Gardeners’ Question Time” with four expert local gardeners.
By late afternoon things were running over half an hour late because audiences were so interested and asked so many questions!
Kitchen demonstrations included:
• “Seaweed Cooking” with Christine Thery
• “Chutney- & Wine-Making” with John Lynch
• “How to Cook what you Grow” with Beth Hallinan
At lunchtime a “Local Food Plate” was served, consisting of foods produced or grown as close as possible to Ballydehob, and was very popular indeed!
And as a bit of fun, there were competitions for the biggest pumpkin, the biggest sunflower and the funniest-shaped vegetable, as well as wellie-throwing for those wishing to work off some of the calories.
Above all the event provided a great opportunity for networking, bringing together as it did farmers, local food producers, horticulturalists, landowners, political activists, campaigners and consumers. Many new connections were made and older ones developed and strengthened. This created a really vibrant buzz throughout the venue, and with the sun shining outside, helped make the Ballydehob Food Day 2010 an event to remember.
Many thanks must go to the many people who gave freely of their time, energy, goodwill and knowledge to make this great event such a hit.
As one well-known local organic producer commented:
“It was great to meet some of our customers and exchange gardening lore. The Ballydehob Food day is a great way of fostering connections between producers and consumers, eating well and having a good time. I loved it.“
Past events include:
Tree Selling Event: 14th March 2010
We organised a tree selling event at Ballydehob Community Hall on 14th March to encourage local people to get planting trees in their garden. We invited Paul & Jacinta from Woodkerne Nurseries to bring along their trees and knowledge and Ballydehob Food Group were offering to subsidise 30 free apple trees to the first 30 people to buy an apple tree. We did give away 19 trees and some other varieties were bought also and Woodkerne answered any questions thrown at them. This was our first time doing this but it might turn into a yearly event – who knows?
Tree Planting Event
As part of National Tree Week, in conjunction with Sustain West Cork, Ballydehob Food Group took part in a tree planting event in the four schools in Ballydehob.
Tree Planting
Beginning at Ballydehob Playgroup we planted two apple trees. Here the children aged between 18 months and 4 years were very interested in the planting and asked plenty of questions; they got stuck in and got their hands dirty.
We then moved on to St Matthias, where the kids also got stuck in and helped to plant 2 cob nut trees. Caz got them to take part in a game about food miles, at the end of which they realised that the apple & nuts they had for lunch that day, had had to go through a lot of processes to arrive at their local shop. Maddie, Caz & Nuala answered all their questions and we left behind a very happy bunch of children & teachers proud of their garden.
Tree Planting
Next on the agenda was the Kindergarten where some eager parents were waiting for us to choose 6 locations for the apple & nut trees. So everyone got stuck in digging and planting and the children aged 2½ – 6 were delighted with the extra addition to their already beautiful garden.
Last school was St Brigid’s where the principal had 2 plots ready for our apple trees. Here the kids were just as keen to get stuck in and get their hands dirty. The food miles game went down a treat with pupils and teachers and they were so proud of their trees that they put a thank you note in the Southern star thanking us all for what we did.
We hope to return to all the schools next year to do any pruning required and will keep a check on the trees in the mean time.
Ballydehob Food Group would like to thank Noreen and Lorna who checked the soil quality & found suitable sites at each school; Sustain West Cork for the trees; The Tree Company for the mulch; and the schools that had prepared the areas; and especially Odette and Kiki who helped with digging, Nuala, Maddie and Caz and lastly Donnacha who helped Nuala transport the mulch to all the schools to ensure the whole process went as planned.
A great day was had by all, and we look forward to the fruits!
Local Food Production Day: October 3, 2009 at An Sanctoir, Ballydehob
Following 2008’s successful event, Ballydehob’s own Local Food Production Day returned to the beautiful grounds of An Sanctoir, with yet another full and inspiring day’s programme running from 10.30am through to 5pm.
Food icon, Peter Ward from Country Choice (Nenagh, Co.Tipperary) gave his inspiring angle on the benefits to be gained through growing food locally. As seen on Late Late Show for Pat Kenny Finale night, Peter is a mover and shaker who really makes things happen. He and his wife Mary have been part of the Irish Culinary scene for 25 years. He has a strong passion for promoting good food that is produced as locally as possible, nutritious, well prepared and well presented. He has aspired to the principles of Good Food Ireland which links local producers, farmers, and fishermen with the hospitality sector. He also promotes the cause of artisan food producers all over Ireland: it is these whom he feels are the foundation stone on which our food culture is built.
Another highlight of the event was a look at two CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) schemes that have been run – with encouraging results – on the Sheep’s Head Peninsula this past growing season. In these schemes, farmers have been employed through individuals buying shares for the growing of potato and oat crops. Here is an ideal opportunity for finding out more about how they went, what difficulties arose, and what opportunities and possibilities such schemes could offer for the future.
Other talks, presentations and practical demonstrations included: how to build simple cloches for your garden; apple pressing; the ongoing plight of bees and beekeepers, with the continuing decline of the bee population, and the effects this has on food security.
Competitions were held for:
- Heaviest pumpkin
- Largest sunflower head
- Funniest-shaped fruit or vegetable
There was also face-painting for the children, and the day proved to be a fun and educational event for all the family. There was a selection of local foods and home produce in the café to taste and enjoy, and local musicians entertaining us whilst we ate, learned and networked. There were also several stalls selling local produce.
All proceeds from this event went towards furthering the aims and objectives of the Ballydehob Food Group.
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