South Downs Food Festival

About

The South Downs Food Festival will be launched by Dame Prue Leith in September, bringing together food enthusiasts, chefs, food writers, campaigners and artisan producers for a weekend of gastronomic delight, stimulating talks, and delicious events. Scheduled for September 14-15, 2024, this inaugural festival will feature a rich array of food and drink from across the South Downs and beyond.

Surrounded by the forests and parkland of the Stansted Park estate in the South Downs National Park, the festival will indulge in the finest Sussex and Hampshire produce, gourmet dishes, and locally brewed beverages. The festival will host a "street" of over 40 artisan producers, a 'Stansted Arm's Pub', cookery demo tent, live music, wood-fired catering, picnics, chef's table and Tea on the Terrace. The festival is a chance to explore local produce, from wild venison to hedgerow walks, pasture-fed beef to grilled corn-on-the-cob. It's a celebratory harvest festival of local food and drink.

There will also be a series of talks in the spectacular Travelling Barn on the 'British Food Revival' inspired by Elizabeth David – the post-war food writer, run by the journalist and author, Rachel Cooke. On day 1, Cooke will host discussions with the writers Diane Purkiss and Julian Baggini. On day two, the 'Future of Food' will look at how we feed ourselves while protecting our environment. There will be discussions between the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Geetie & Guy Singh-Watson, organic pub owner & founder of Riverford, James Baird, Weald to Waves founder and Peter Gladwin, chef, writer, restauranteur and Nutbourne vineyard owner.