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Good
Food Guernsey is setting out its table with a series of new ‘Taste of Guernsey’
events which will celebrate local produce and food expertise so that everyone
can enjoy the island’s food heritage. Monthly
‘Taste of Guernsey’ activities start in May with themed activities taking
place monthly somewhere in the
island. The Good Food Guernsey’s group spokesmansays: “These Taste of
Guernsey events are a great, direct way for us to remind local people of what
makes food grown and prepared in Guernsey worth celebrating and enjoying. “We have even recruited a
new chef to join Guernsey’s food elite. But the local industry shouldn’t feel
threatened as he is a bit of a muppet and will purely employed to engage with
youngsters and help hand out our free tasters. “Islanders
will be encouraged to sample different types of local food, some grown locally
and some traditional recipes. Everyone will also be invited to take part in
activities to help whet their appetite to find out more about Guernsey’s food
history and expertise.” The
first appearance by the Guernsey chef will be on the May bank holiday weekend
when he will be launching the Island’s food diary competition. Ends
Nicaragua
to St Peter Port BEAN 14, the local coffee bean
roast and grind
company, has set up a direct Guernsey to Nicaragua link that has been rewarded
with record beating sales. Chris Bader – the company’s
founder – was invited to
Nicaragua by their coffee development agency on a
research and judging tour of small, remote coffee farms. He was sufficiently
impressed by improving standards there to include some of the best independently
farmed beans in his best selling St Peter Port blend. Now his faith in
the beans has been
rewarded by local shoppers who have made it their favourite over other ground
coffee blends on sale. ‘We were delighted and also a bit shocked to be included in
the Nicaraguan tour. To be involved because of our tasting expertise is really
flattering. Then when Checkers told us that our St Peter Port blend
was their number 1 seller last year
we were once again delighted but rather surprised to out-do the better known
imported brands,’ says Mr Bader. ‘We included
the Nicaraguan beans in the
blend because of their taste. Then meeting the farmers face-to-face and doing
on-site testing shows me that the taste is getting continually better, as the
farmers understand the rewards of improved quality. ‘When Guernsey
shoppers buy our blends
they appreciate that the beans are
freshly roasted and ground here in the island. They can also enjoy knowing that
they are making a direct and dramatic difference to the lives of communities on
the other side of the world.” Bean 14 is fast developing
as a local food success
story. The company now supplies leading local cafés and hotels with bean blends
as well as retail and direct sales. After just over two years, the business has
now expanded sufficiently to re-design and upgrade its packaging ready to
engage even more local coffee purchasers. Ends
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