The 7th 'Taste' festival will start this year on Friday 23 September and for duration of the festival,  the two weeks will be packed with fun, interesting, family-friendly events until the final one on Sunday 9 October... Orchard Harvest Day at Winterbourne Barn!

There are several new entrants for the 2011 'Taste' festival - The Portcullis Hotel in Chipping Sodbury and The Lord Nelson Inn at Marshfield are both joining in for the first time and offering sumptuous local food and drink throughout the festival dates.  Other great new events are children's cupcake decorating, a West Country Cheeseboard and a couple of Wild Food Foraging walks and talks.

Programmes are now available in all libraries, One-Stop shops, schools, Youth Centres, Community Centres and Parishes - as well as from South Gloucestershire Council's website (Environment/Environmental policy, strategy and action/Local Food Initiative -

OR simply follow the link on the left hand side 'Festival' to view the full programme.

Last year, Theatre in Shops "Trading Local" (performed by Show of Strength Theatre Company) launched the 2010 festival. Cllr Janet Biggin, Chair of South Gloucestershire Council and Cllr Shirley Potts from Staple Hill Ward, launched this event and the festival itself.

Festival launch, Staple Hill (Photograph: Neil Phillips Photography)                                                                                                    

         Apples on sale at the Sheiling School, Thornbury last year

2010 Winterbourne Medieval Barn Orchard Day - about 700 people enjoyed all the activities, stalls, children's games, Morris dancing - to say nothing of the warm sunshine - a truly wonderful event!

BUY LOCAL

  Your local loaf!  Hobbs House Bakery, Chipping Sodbury

Have you ever wondered how you can help the environment, support local businesses, save money AND enjoy some amazing food - all at the same time?  The answer is simple - buy local!

More and more people are realising the benefits of buying from their local food producers. South Gloucestershire and the surrounding areas produce some fantastic food, from organic meat and ice cream, to eggs, milk, preserves, fresh pasta and cakes.

Want to find our where to buy some of this great food? or where your nearest farmers’ market is? - then check out the Maps section (follow the link on the left) and the local food news and other pages following the links on the left.

Why local?

It's good for the planet...A lot of food in the big supermarkets travels hundreds and even thousands of miles before it gets to you. This uses a lot of oil in transportation and causes a huge amount of pollution - addition to climate change. Local food are also generally wrapped in less packaging, which saves resources and reduces waste.

It's good for the economy...Money spent directly within your town with independent businesses or local farmers and producers stays within your community. This provides them with a fairer price and helps create more jobs. Lower overheads mean you can often get really high quality food for a good price too.

And it's fun too... There's no doubt that supermarkets are convenient - but nothing beats getting to know your local shopkeepers and being able to ask for advice on the best way to cook a joint of meat, or new ways to prepare vegetables.

Taste and savour the flavour all the good food and drink in South Gloucestershire!

Council supports local food and drink producers! Image: Neil Phillips Photography

 Cllr.Shirley Holloway &local Chef Ron Faulkner open 2009 festival.

Local produce - Thornbury Food Fair

South Gloucestershire Council is supporting local farmers and producers by working in partnership with others to increase the amount of local, fresh food.

This is because buying locally produced food is great for the local economy and your health and also helps sustain the local landscapes we know and love.