| Anglesey Oyster & Welsh Produce Festival | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | food festival |
| Dates | October |
| Location(s) | Anglesey |
| Founded | 2006 |
| Founders | Anglesey Oyster & Shellfish Festival Ltd |
| Attendance | 3,000 |
| Website | www.angleseyoysterfestival.com |
The Anglesey Oyster and Welsh Produce Festival is an annual food festival that was established in 2006 and is held during October in Anglesey, Wales.
The festival started as an informal social event based on the consumption of oysters, drinking and dancing and was formalised into a food festival in 2006 when it was also expanded to include other types of food. [1]
The original focus of the festival was originally seafood, in particular local oyster production which is organised around the fast-flowing waters of the Menai Strait. The festival has since expanded to include other food types from local producers. Many of the producers are local farmers and fishermen who produce beef, lamb, lobsters and oysters. Some of these producers have diversified into producing cheese, chocolate and real ale. The festival has been described as "a friendly food fair giving visitors the opportunity to meet and build relationships with over 40 producers".
The festival has included cookery demonstrations, talks from producers, recipe ideas, cookery tips and competitions, including a sausage competition, and a Music and Mussels event. The event has also organised a black tie gala dinner and entertainment has included Welsh and Irish dancing. There is an entertainment marquee. [2] [3] [4]
The festival is supported by volunteers and organised by a limited company, Anglesey Oyster & Shellfish Festival Ltd. [5] The festival has also received Welsh Government support. [6]
The festival is located at Trearddur and takes place at the Trearddur Bay Hotel, Lon Isallt, Trearddur Bay, Anglesey, LL65 2UN.
The festival has around 3,000 visitors and there is an entry fee.
The National Eisteddfod of Wales is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitors typically number 6,000 or more, and overall attendance generally exceeds 100,000 visitors, the highest recently being 118,000 attending the 2022 festival. The 2018 Eisteddfod was held in Cardiff Bay with a fence-free 'Maes'. In 2020, the event was held virtually under the name AmGen; events were held over a one-week period.
Trearddur or Trearddur Bay is a village, seaside resort and community south of Holyhead on the west coast of Holy Island off the north-west coast of Anglesey in Wales. The community includes the small settlement of Penrhosfeilw and the Refail Farm estate.
The music of Cardiff has been dominated mainly by rock music since the early 1990s with later trends developing towards more extreme styles of the genre such as heavy metal and metalcore music. It, along with the nearby music scene in Newport, has brought a number of musicians to perform or begin their careers in South Wales.
The cuisine of Gower, a peninsula in south Wales, is based on ingredients grown, raised or collected on or around the peninsula. The cuisine is based on fresh ingredients with recipes based around a fish or meat dish. Until the twentieth century, the peninsula was virtually cut off from other markets due to poor roads, and no rail connection. The result was that Gower became self-sufficient in food.
Colin Pressdee is a food writer, broadcaster and consultant living in London.
Pembrokeshire has been called "the cottage garden of Wales", due to its good soil and the beneficial effects of the Gulf Stream, which provide a mild climate and a longer growing season than other parts of the country. The good climate and soil meant that the south of the peninsula was coveted by the Norsemen and Normans because it had "great plentie" of corn and cattle The county has prime agricultural land, much of which is located at about 70m above sea level, while to the north, the Preseli Hills rise to 500m above sea level and form uplands that are made up of heather and bracken, which are used for grazing sheep. Consequently, Pembrokeshire is classed as one of the most fertile counties in Wales, with its 392,300 agricultural acres having 14% of its land classed as of good quality, 67% being classed as medium quality and 19% being classed as poor quality. However, agricultural production is subject to market forces and in the 1890s, as a result of the Panic of 1893, a deep agricultural depression led to the area under cultivation falling by a third. Many labourers and farmers had no option but to emigrate to the New World and many of the large farming estates were sold. World War I brought prosperity again, but by the 1930s, as a result of the Great Depression, there was another agricultural depression which lasted until World War II. During the Post-war period agriculture has benefited from marketing schemes and marketing boards, which have helped in the regulation, marketing and distribution of the county's agricultural production.
The coast of Ceredigion is made up of a long coastal plain that contains high cliffs, coves, large bays and estuaries. The coastal plain gets narrower towards the more mountainous north of the county and is cut by the wide estuaries of the Teifi and the Dyfi. The broad and fertile Teifi valley is ideal for dairy farming and mixed farming. Heavy rainfall washes the minerals out of the soil and results in the mountainous areas of the county having relatively poorer, acidic soils. The plough line can be as low as 700 feet, which restricts cultivation.
Narberth Food Festival is an annual food festival held at Town Moor, Narberth, Pembrokeshire.
Cardigan River and Food Festival is an annual food festival held at Cardigan, Ceredigion.
Gŵyl Fwyd Llanbed - Lampeter Food Fest is an annual food festival held at Lampeter in Ceredigion.
Neath Food and Drink Festival is an annual food festival held in Neath, South Wales.
Cowbridge Food and Drink Festival is an annual food festival held in Cowbridge, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales.
Monmouthshire Food Festival was an annual food festival held in Caldicot Castle in Monmouthshire
The Brecon Beacons Food Festival is an annual food festival that was established in 1998. The festival is held during October in Brecon, a town which is located in the Brecon Beacons National Park.
The Big Cheese Festival is an annual food festival held in July that was established in 2000 and is held in Caerphilly.
The Big Welsh Bite Food Festival is an annual food festival that is held in Pontypridd.
Beaumaris Food Festival is an annual food festival held over a weekend usually during September in Beaumaris.
Trearddur Bay Football Club is a Welsh football team based in Trearddur, Anglesey, Wales. The club plays in the North Wales Coast West Football League Premier Division which is in the fourth tier of the Welsh football pyramid.