Understanding the food chainknowledge and the pursuit of pleasure – and profitApril 16th 2009 1pm until 4.15pm the Cookery theAtre of the exeter festivAl of south West food And drink, in the CAstle CourtyArd

Conference ProgrammeThe pursuit of excellence in everything we do

Welcome to the 4th South West Excellence Conference April 16th 2009

Understanding the food chain – knowledge and the pursuit of pleasure – and profit.food and tourism – the importance of food and drink tourism as means of adding value to the South West experience.food and farming – how can imparting knowledge and understanding of farming methods help businesses to market themselves?food and the environment – the need to get the message across.food and education – the importance of teaching a new generation about the values of real food. How can learning about food increase consumers’ pleasure as well as awareness? What is the relevance of the Slow Food movement to activities in the South West?1.00pm Delegates arrive - tea, coffee, water 1.30pm Conference opens: presenters and themes to be introduced by Marc Millon, Conference Director1.35pm Welcome from donald sloan, Conference Chairman Co-founder and Chair of Oxford Gastronomica, Donald Sloan is also Head of the Department of Hospitality, Leisure and Tourism Management at Oxford Brookes University, a position he has held since 2003. He teaches, researches and publishes in the field of gastronomy, and has particular expertise in aspects of food-related consumer behaviour and social influences on the construction of culinary taste. In 2003 he was the first recipient of the Martin Radcliffe Fellowship in Gastronomy, funded by the Savoy Educational Trust. In 2008 Donald was appointed Trustee of the Jane Grigson Trust.1.45pm food and tourism rosemary Barron, food writer, author and consultant food tourism in the south West – its importance and value Tourism is possibly the world’s largest industry and the South West’s largest employer. Food and drink are vital components of that industry and a reflection of the culture of our region and its people. Drawing on her experiences both in our region as well as in Greece and Romania, Rosemary Barron considers the value of food tourism and the many positive benefits that it can bring to the South West.Rosemary Barron, Somerset-based author and food writer, owned a highly-acclaimed cooking school on Crete from 1980-86. Based in a 450-year old village

house, it was the embodiment of “food tourism”. Since then, she has run courses on food, food history and culture on Santorini, and organised programmes and presented lectures and workshops on various culinary matters to a large variety of audiences worldwide. Rosemary has worked as a consultant to reputable food companies and organisations in the United States, United Kingdom and Greece. A former President of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, she is currently working with NGOs on the development of sustainable food tourism in Romania. Rosemary has a deep understanding of the enormous potential the South West to establish and promote itself as a world-class food region and food tourism destination.2.05pm food and farming Case study 1 Guy Watson, Riverford Organic Vegetables loving cabbage and competing with the tvPrime time television would suggest a nation of enthusiastic gardeners and cooks obsessed with seasonal and local food and happy chickens. Guy Watson considers how can we bridge the gap with reality?Guy was born and raised at Riverford Farm as one of five children, all five of whom are today running food businesses from the farm. After a short spell working as a marketing consultant in London and New York, he returned to the farm to start Riverford Organic Vegetables in 1986. Over the past 23 years, the business has grown from three acres and a wheelbarrow, to employing 400 staff with sales of £35 million. A vegetable box scheme was started in 1993 as a means of escaping the grasp of the supermarkets and now delivers to 45,000 households a week and represents 95% of sales. But growth is not everything; Guy is sceptical of the benefits of scale and has built a business based on long-term co-operation with growers and joint ventures at a local level enabling national delivery but from six regional farms, normally within 75 miles of the customer. 2.20pm food and farming Case study 2 peter Greig, Pipers Farm “probably the best sensation in the world”Brand-building from the bottom up, based on a solid foundation, and a passionate and consistent commitment to USPs.“The best thing I have ever done in my life is find the most fantastic partner!” says Peter Greig. Having been brought up on a small mixed livestock farm in Kent, Peter did a BSc in Agriculture at Wye College, and within a month of starting the course had fallen completely in love! After travelling and working together in Australia and New Zealand, Peter and Henri married and farmed a high hill farm in Wensleydale.

The couple moved to Devon and started Pipers Farm from ‘a clean sheet of paper’ in 1989. From the beginning, Pipers Farm has been about partnerships. It has been a steep learning curve, but progress has been made by building a team of people whose skills and commitment help Peter and Henri to offer to customers the best and healthiest meat they can buy, meat that is both sensational to eat and also excellent value.2.35pm Short break 2.50pm food and the environment patrick mcCaig, Otter Brewery otter’s new eco-brewery and a green way of thinkingThe case for bringing environmentally sensitive thinking into businesses, an outline of some of the benefits and the pitfalls.Patrick McCaig is Sales and Marketing Director of Otter Brewery and is mad about beer, brands and Devon. Otter Brewery was established by his parents David and MaryAnn McCaig, who, coming from over five generations of brewers, without a doubt, have ‘beer in the blood’!Patrick spent his former years as wannabee opera singer but after a while and diminishing audience numbers, spent just short of ten years with Gray London, an advertising agency specialising in brand development. Working with clients such as United Distillers, British Airways and BAT has helped Patrick develop a strategic understanding of brand values and service. Otter Brewery brews some of the most well-known and popular beers in the South West and the brewery has family values at its core. These values manifest themselves in everything the brewery does, from brewing and recycling to delivering and service. Otter Brewery is a young business with traditional principles and very much part of Devon life.3.05pm food and education James dart, Darts Farm the darts farm food Club – growing the passion!James Dart introduces the Darts Farm Food Club and demonstrates how sharing the expertise and knowledge of producers, artisans and chefs can help to grow the passion and knowledge of its customers and increase their loyalty to the local food community.After studying for a Business and Marketing Degree at Newcastle Agric, James travelled in Asia before returning in 1992 to join the family business at Clyst St George, known then as Picfresh. Since then, he has worked alongside brothers Mike and Paul to create Darts Farm. Darts Farm has managed to stand its ground as a family run independent local food retailer and has become an integral link in the local food

community, building over many years, strong relationships with local farmers, food producers and artisans. The aim is to raise the awareness and knowledge of its customers and in the process enable them to more fully appreciate what is special about products that have been made with love, care and passion, in the hope that we can help preserve these crafts for the next generation. 3.20pm mary Quicke mBe, Quickes Traditional Quicke slow CheeseMary Quicke MBE explores the value to her cheese business of Slow Food, the global movement that celebrates food that is ‘good, clean and just’. Mary Quicke runs J G Quicke & Partners, and Quickes Traditional Ltd a £3m turnover integrated cheesemaking and farming (cows and crops) business. Quicke’s Traditional Cheddar Cheese is the largest traditional cheddar maker, selling to wholesalers and the independent market, to export, mainly USA and Australia. The 1500-acre farm has 500 cows grazing outside for 10-11 months a year, grows crops to feed the cows, to sell and to support wildlife in extensive environmental schemes. The business employs 32 people in Newton St Cyres, Exeter, Devon.Mary has various interests across the food, farming and wildlife sectors.3.35pm James Chubb, East Devon Education Ranger inspiring the next generationJames Chubb outlines the underlying aims and ambitions of the ‘Food 4 Thought’ project, the impact it has had in Devon schools, and his future hopes to bring an interest about food and where it comes from to East Devon’s classrooms.James is East Devon District Council’s Education Ranger, charged with the brief to increase people’s awareness and appreciation of the East Devon countryside. A lifelong passion for wildlife led James into a career working as a Ranger. He turned his attention to food education as part of the Year of Food and Farming in a project with Michael Caines entitled “Food 4 Thought”. This resource has now been circulated to every secondary school in Devon and James hopes to follow this with a film project investigating the intricacies of seafood and marine conservation in 2009.3.50pm Panel discussion on issues raised by the presentations – led by donald sloan with michael Caines mBe, mike dart and marc millon 4.00pm Q & A; Final thoughts and conclusions4.15pm Conference adjourns

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Special thanks to: Lisa Partridge, Festival Administrator Evelyn Westwater, Taste of the West Photography by Kim Millon

Freddie Dudbridge Conference Co-ordinator

marc millon,

Conference director

Marc is a food, wine

and travel writer

and the author of 13

books on these topics,

together with his wife photographer Kim

Millon. Together, they pioneered a series

of wine and food travel guides to Europe’s

greatest wine regions, encouraging readers

to explore, experience, understand and

enjoy through the culture of wine and food.

Marc, an American born in Mexico, has

lived in Devon for nearly 35 years and is

closely involved in food and drink activities

in the South West. He writes for a number

of local as well as national publications, is

a member of Slow Food Devon, co-runs the

monthly Slow Food Devon Topsham Market,

and works closely with Michael Caines as

Editorial Consultant for ABode Hotels and

Michael Caines Restaurants. Together with

Kim, they run Quay Press, a new media

consultancy specialising in food and drink.

michael Caines, festival partner Michael has been the inspiration behind the Exeter Festival of South West Food and Drink since it first began in 2004. As the region’s best known 2-star Michelin chef at Gidleigh Park, as well as Partner at ABode Hotels, and Executive Chef at The Bath Priory, Michael has long been a champion of quality produce, food and drink from our region. He understands the potential of South West excellence in farming, fishing and food production to be a positive driving force in all areas of the local economy, from tourism to every aspect of the hospitality industry. As a Director and Partner of the Exeter Festival of South West Food and Drink, Michael’s aim is for quality food and drink from our region to be able to compete with the very best from all over the world.

michael dart,

festival partner

Michael, together with

his brothers James and

Paul, has transformed

a farm shop hut that

began nearly 40 years ago by their late

father into Darts Farm, an independent

retail shopping village that has become

a nationally renowned showcase for the

finest food and drink from the South West.

Darts Farm supports and champions the

efforts of literally hundreds of local farmers

and food producers, offering ‘food that

is locally grown, reared, baked, caught

or produced’. As part of his Nuffield

scholarship, Michael is currently studying

the Slow Food movement and its importance

to local communities and rural economies.