THE Delicious Jersey Dine-Out festival will aim to promote the environmental benefits of eating locally produced food and drink when it launches in the autumn.
Held from 1 October to mid-November, the festival is being organised by the Jersey Hospitality Association in partnership with AIM, the parent company of the Jersey Evening Post and Bailiwick Express, and will be offering Islanders a range of specially priced menus and dishes from an estimated 150 food and drink establishments around the Island.
The emphasis during the festival – and throughout the ensuing 12-month Delicious programme – will be on promoting products that have been caught, grown or produced locally, with an additional focus on educating the public about the need to avoid food waste and reduce food mileage.
Ana and Marcus Calvani, the co-chief executives of the Jersey Hospitality Association, said that while the primary aim of the Delicious Jersey Dine-Out festival would be for Islanders to ‘have fun and eat good food’, they also want it to be an ‘eye-opening’ experience when and wherever possible.
‘I think things like Clarkson’s Farm, Jamie and Jimmy and Wonky Veg are all pretty standard now, and they’ve made people more open to the realities of food production,’ said Mr Calvani.
‘I think we’ve got to be brave about making sure that we tell the truth across the board. For example, if you like milk in your coffee in the morning then, unless we start rearing male cows and eating them, that is going to mean baby cows being killed.
‘These are topics that some people don’t want to read or hear about but the reality is that the more honest and wholesome we are, the better. I think the Island is ready for that.’
Another key aim of the Delicious Jersey Dine-Out festival will be to connect cafés, hotels and restaurants with local industries, with which they perhaps would not typically interact, be it agriculture, fishing or otherwise – ‘joining the dots’ as Mr Calvani puts it. This, in turn, will result in a reduction of food mileage.
‘As an association, we are not scared of saying that we all, as individuals, need to be more responsible in what we choose to eat,’ said Mr Calvani. ‘And, by doing so, we can all contribute to the local economy and keep growers, fishers, farmers and all those kind of guys in business.’
Peter Le Maistre, president of the Jersey Farmers’ Union, said: ‘Big strides have been made over the past 18 months to encourage a resurgence in the production of locally grown food. In order for this to be a real success story, however, we need local sales. The Dine-Out festival is a really exciting development in terms of enabling Jersey farmers to reach new customers.’
Another Islander who will be playing a key role in the Delicious Jersey Dine-Out festival is Malcolm Lewis, who is chair of Longueville Manor and hotels sub-sector chair of the Jersey Hospitality Association.
‘Delicious will help to put Jersey firmly on the global foodie map,’ he said. ‘It’s a bold 12-month programme that will join up the hospitality industry with local agriculture and fisheries, beginning with the Delicious Jersey Dine-Out festival in October.
‘It will an opportunity to shout about our amazing produce, headlined, of course, by the Jersey cow, by our unique potato, by abundant fish and shellfish, and by our ever-growing wine and drinks industry.’
