Pembroke Farmers Market

Pembroke Farmers Market is run by Pembroke 21C fortnightly in the Pembroke Town Hall

POTATO FESTIVAL SUCCESS 2010

 The fourth Pembroke Potato Festival held on Saturday 5th June in Pembroke Town Hall brought over 1,000 people into Pembroke from all over the County and South Wales.  The event, which is presented by Pembroke Farmers Market run by Pembroke 21C, is held each year to showcase Pembrokeshire’s most famous local crop – the first early potatoes. 

 Potatoes grown on five farms on the Angle Peninsula were on sale.  Barry Hathway of Broomhill Farm was selling the variety Lady Crystal from the huge one tonne box outside the front of the Town Hall which has become the symbol of this innovative food festival.

 Inside the Tanyard Youth Project were cooking and serving three varieties of first early potatoes for people to taste with a range of home made butters and herbs.  Two members of Tanyard were joined by two members of the South Pembrokeshire Young Farmers for a Ready Steady Cook style cook off, compèred by Chef Hazel Thomas.  The young people showed such skill and imagination in producing tasty dishes that the competition was declared a draw. 

 Hazel Thomas gave three demonstrations of delicious potato dishes such as Bistro Potato Salad and Homemade Potato and Tomato Salsa.  Local artists Space to Create also used the potatoes to create stamps for children to printing bunting and crowns.  The versatility of Pembrokeshire’s new potatoes is endless! 

 “This was the most successful Potato Festival yet.  It had a real buzz and community feel about it ” said Elizabeth Gossage, organizer of the event.  “It is particularly special as Pembroke Farmers Market has just received notification from FARMA that it is now a Certified Farmers Market.” 

 Farmers' market Certification is a scheme run by the National Farmers' Retail and Markets Association (FARMA) which independently assesses and certifies farmers' markets round the country to make sure they're the 'real deal' so you can be confident you are buying the freshest, most local produce possible, supporting your local community and economy, and helping the environment by reducing food-miles.

 

The Pembroke Potato Festival is supported by the Welsh Assembly Government Food and Market Development Division through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. 

 

For more information contact:                                                                              

Elizabeth Gossage                                                            

Development Officer                                            

Pembroke 21C Community Association                  

Foundry House

Orange Way

Pembroke SA71 4DR

Telephone 01646 680090

email elizabeth@pembroke21c.org

Chairperson Rosey Mitchell and Jo Brookman of the recently renamed PCMAD Group, Pembroke Can Make A Difference (formerly Sustainable Energy) chatting with people re the Food Competition

Food miles shock

 A competition held at the annual Pembroke Potato Festival on 5th June has highlighted the importance of buying your food from local sources.

 

Run by the Pembroke Can Make a Difference group, a sub group of Pembroke 21C Community Association, the competition presented two nearly identical bags of food.  Entrants were asked to state how many food miles they thought it had taken to bring the food to their tables and those who estimated the closest mileage won the bags of food. 

 One bag contained food purchased at the Potato Festival from producers who regularly attend the Pembroke Farmers Market.  The total food miles contained in it was worked out by the group as 141. 

 In contrast the bag of food purchased from the supermarket clocked up an astonishing 44,580 food miles! 

“This was just a bit of fun though we hoped it would demonstrate the need to buy locally”, said Rosey Mitchell, Chair of the Pembroke Can Make a Difference Group.  “The result is quite shocking and will certainly make me think twice before going to the supermarket in future! The other interesting thing is that the supermarket shop was only £2 cheaper than the market shop so it isn’t a question of saving money either. ”  

 The winners of the competition were Jack Sweet who won the bag of local food, and Eve Kidney who won the bag of supermarket food. 

Further information:

Pembroke Can Make a Difference is a project funded by Environment Wales, Awards for All Wales and the Waterloo Foundation.  It is designed to show how a small community can encourage lifestyle changes that actually make a difference to our impact on the environment. 

 

Pembroke held its third Potato Festival on Saturday, June 6th, 2009.  Regular producers from Pembroke Farmers Market were joined by other local food and drink producers and plant growers.  Pembroke Farmers Market is held in the Town Hall every fortnight on Saturday mornings. 

Click here for the story and pictures

 

Dates for 2010 Markets

Saturdays 9.30am to 1.30pm at Pembroke Town Hall

 

February 13th and 27th
March 13th and 27th
April 3rd, 10th and 24th
May 8th and 22nd
June 5th and 19th
July 3rd, 17th and 31st
August 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th
September 11th and 25th
October 9th and 23rd
November 6th and 20th
December 11th and 18th

 

ABOUT PEMBROKE FARMERS MARKET

 

Held fortnightly in Pembroke Town Hall from 9.30am to 1.30pm, the markets have grown steadily since they began in the summer of 2006, gaining new producers each year and a loyal and increasing customer base from all over South Pembrokeshire.

 

The regular producers attending the markets sell a wide range of produce – meat and poultry, fruit and vegetables, home made preserves, soft drinks, goats milk ice cream, eggs, cakes and savories, and plants and flowers. 

 

Everything sold is grown, reared or made within a 50 mile radius of Pembroke and sold by the producer or someone involved in the production process.  Producers from Pembrokeshire are encouraged to apply for the Pembrokeshire Produce Mark which assures the consumer that they are buying the best quality local produce. 

 

“The markets have a real buzz now”, said Elizabeth Gossage, Development Officer of Pembroke 21C who organizes Pembroke Farmers Market.  “It is so good to see people not only enjoying shopping for great local food, but also stopping to have a chat or a coffee and a snack with their friends and neighbours.  The producers are all extremely knowledgeable, happy to talk about their production processes and growing methods and keen to offer ideas and suggestions on cooking and recipes. It is real personal service!”  

 

Pembroke Market is now under the banner of Pembrokeshire Farmers Markets, working with Pembrokeshire County Council Food Officer Kate Morgan.  This covers joint marketing and membership of FARMA (Farmers Retail and Markets Association). Pembroke is now a fully accredited Farmers Market. 

 

Producers

Cig Lodor Meat (Benni Thomas)

Tel: 01437 532277

Lodor Fach, Maenclochog, Pembrokeshire SA66 7RD

Home produced lamb, beef, pork and home cured bacon.  Home made sausages and burgers.

Cuckoo Mill Farm (Martin and Julie Davies)

Tel: 01437 762139

Pelcomb Bridge, Haverfordwest SA62 6EA

Home produced turkeys and a range of turkey products.

Barn Produce (Jason Kendrick)

Tel: 01834 870071

Badgers Holt, Jameston, nr Tenby SA70 8QJ

A wide variety of freshly picked seasonal vegetables and salad crops.

Glebe Farm (Julie Rogers)

Tel: 01834 844335

Gumfreston, Tenby, Pembrokeshire SA70 8RA

Home grown seasonal vegetables and free range eggs. 

Sodston Nursery (Patrick McNaughton)

Tel: 01834 860484

Sodston House Farm, Nr Narberth, Pembrokeshire SA67 8HB

Unusual hardy perennials and garden plants

Springfields Fresh Produce (Manorbier) Ltd (Pat and Nick Bean)

Tel: 01834 871746

Manorbier, Tenby SA70 7SL

A range of soft fruits, potatoes, asparagus, field vegetables, daffodils and bedding plants, all home produced direct on farm.

F J Hathaway & Sons (Barry Hathaway)

Tel: 01646 641214

Broomhill Farm, Angle, Pembroke, Pembrokeshire SA71 5AH

Potatoes, carrots, swede and other seasonal vegetables

Homemade Country Preserves (Christine and Jeff Evans)

Tel: 01437 731553

10 Moorfield Avenue, Clarbeston Road SA63 4UU

Home made jam, jelly, marmalade, chutney, relish, pickles and mincemeat – also diabet preserves and cake

Farmhouse Bakery (Martin Riggs)

Tel: 01437 741516

Goree, Camrose, Haverfordwest SA62 5YH

Wholesome local ingredients, traditionally home made.  A wide range of cakes using traditional recipes.

  

Margaret Cowan

Tel: 01646 680077

15 Bishops Lane, Pembroke, Pembrokeshire SA71 5JN

Home made jams, pickles and chutneys using locally sourced fruit and vegetables

Charlemar (Leon Charman)

Tel: 01646 684477

Charlemar, Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire SA71 4RY

Free range home produced eggs

Lovespoon Gelato (Tony and Jo Knight)

Tel: 01559 370132

Little Ffarm Dairy, Ffarm Fach, Newcastle Emlyn, Carmarthenshire SA38 9NQ

Luxury Goats’ Milk Ice Cream – delicious, traditionally made Italian-style ice cream made from pure, natural ingredients.

                                             

 Pembroke Potato Festival 2009

Around 2,000 people came to the Festival which was held for the third year running in Pembroke’s Town Hall.  The main attraction was undoubtedly Lovespoon Gelato’s potato ice cream, which producer Jo Knight created as a one-off especially for the Festival.  Declared creamy, lightly spicy and deliciously moreish it attracted wide media coverage both before and after the Potato Festival. 

With activities for children run by Circus Malarkey and Space to Create and a series of partners who worked with Pembroke Farmers Market organisers Pembroke 21C, the day that had something for everyone.  Local potato growers were there in force, Chef Hazel Thomas demonstrated new potato dishes, South Pembrokeshire Young Farmers cooked potatoes for people to taste, local schools brought in potatoes growing projects, and Tanyard Youth Project served tea, coffee and cakes. 

 

 

Organiser Elizabeth Gossage said, “The day had a real community buzz about it while clearly having a much wider and emotive appeal.  It is a quirky idea for a food festival but potatoes are the ultimate comfort food.  Served simply with local butter and herbs there is really no finer dish in the world!”

 

The Pembroke Potato Festival was supported by the Welsh Assembly Government Food and Market Development Division through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. 

 

Activities included:

  • Pick your Own potatoes – fill a bag from a huge container of loose potatoes
  • From Field to Plate - Pembrokeshire First Early Potato Variety of 2009 tasting
  • Chef Hazel Thomas – Food Consultant and Chef on S4C – will demonstrate some potato dishes
  • Ready Steady Cook competition
  • Circus Marlarkey - Potato Juggling and other activities for children
  • Potato head mask workshops with Space to Create Community Arts
  • Music from local musicians and bands
  • An exhibition of Pembroke’s Potato Growing heritage
  • Local schools' early potatoes grown in recycled containers as part of our project to measure Pembroke’s impact on the environment called Pembroke Can Make a Difference! 
  • Display stands, ie British Potato Council of exhibitors eg Puffin Produce, Pembroke NFU etc.

 

The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development: Europe Investing in Rural Areas

 Cronfa Amaethyddol Ewrop ar gyfer Datblygu Gwledig: Ewrop yn Buddsoddi mewn Ardaloedd Gwledig

 

The Second Pembroke Potato Festival 2008

 The Second Potato Festival took place on 31st MAY 2008 - here are some highlights.

 

        

Potato lovers were out in force on Saturday at. The glorious weather was a welcome bonus and in addition to over a ton of local new potatoes being sold on the day, shoppers were spoilt for choice with the wealth of top quality local produce on offer from the Pembroke Farmers Market producers who packed the Pembroke Town Hall venue. 

        

 

South Pembrokeshire Young Farmers cooked six different varieties of Pembrokeshire earlies for people to sample on the day and also took part in a Ready Steady Cook style cookery competition.  The Young Farmers team of Gethin Llewellyn and Rachel Hughes were victorious against a team from Pembrokeshire College following a vote by the audience. 

          

 

These were not the only students taking part in the Festival – over 200 pupils from six local schools have been growing potatoes and producing project work.  The schools growing their crops in pots brought a selection of plants to show.  When all their crops are harvested in a few weeks time the schools winner will be announced. 

 

 
 

   

Other highlights of the day were a series of cookery demonstrations in a professional-standard mobile kitchen by award winning Welsh Chef Nick Davies, a senior member of the Welsh Culinary Team, Circus Malarky who, in their own unique style revealed the secrets of potato juggling and local artists from Sand Palace Arts showed their versatility helping the youngsters create wonderful art work with potato stamps.   

 

 

 

               

 

 

 The Pembroke Potato Festival was organised by Pembroke Farmers Market, a collaboration          between Pembroke 21C Community Association and Pembroke Country Markets and was funded by the Welsh Assembly Government. 

          

 

Photography by Gwen Griffiths

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