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Ledbury Evening Market celebrates Christmas

Ledbury’s new Evening Farmer’s Market ends 2019 with a special Christmas market on Thursday 5th December from 6 to 8pm at the Barn, St Katherine’s, on same night as Ledbury’s Shops Late Night Opening.

As well as the regular stalls, special treats on sale will include chocolates, marshmallows, empanadas, Juneberry Liqueur and a “community” stall with “Big Apple Cider Vinegar” and “Ledbury Heritage Centre” Quince and Medlar Jelly, plus mulled wine and cider too! We will be singing carols at 6.30 and 7pm. Continue reading “Ledbury Evening Market celebrates Christmas”

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Fair Game?

DT Waller and Sons’ Venison Burger

We live in a part of the country where game of all kinds – deer, wild boar, pheasant, partridge etc. – is readily available through butchers and game dealers, especially at this time of year.

A topic that is growing in weight in the media is the use of toxic lead shot to bag game. In July, Waitrose announced that from the 2020-21 season it will ban the sale in its stores of birds shot with lead ammunition. This follows from recommendations by the government’s expert group in 2015 which concluded that there were no ways to reduce the risk to human health and wildlife from lead shot other than using non-toxic ammunition instead.

Continue reading “Fair Game?”

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Congratulations to 2019 Great Taste Award winners

Congratulations to local food and drink producers have again done well in this year’s Great Taste Awards, emphasising the wealth of super food and drink produced in Herefordshire and nearby.

Ledbury and district producers who have achieved awards this year include JUS from Aylton with their Cox’s Origin Pippin and Worcester Permain Apple Juices (both 2 star awards), Myrtle’s Kitchen from the Hop Pocket with their Mango Chutney (2 stars), Just Rachel Quality Desserts from Bromsberrow with their Gooseberry and Elderflower Ice Cream (1 star), Townsend Farm, Stretton Grandison (1 star) for their farm pressed Jonagold apple juice and Willys Ltd with orchards in Little Marcle for their Apple Cider Vinegars (four awards) and their Kombucha drinks (two awards). Continue reading “Congratulations to 2019 Great Taste Award winners”

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Herefordshire Chosen to Host International Cider Celebration

The county of Herefordshire is coming together to host the first conference of the recently-formed International Network of Cider Culture & Tourism Destinations this autumn. As interest in cider continues to grow throughout the world, “Ciderlands” as the network is known, seeks to promote travel and cultural exchanges between classic and emerging cider regions, as well as to act as a cider tourism beacon for the world as a whole. Continue reading “Herefordshire Chosen to Host International Cider Celebration”

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Ledbury Food Group asks would you like to help?

We are a group of volunteers passionate about supporting our local farmers, food producers and shops as a means of sustaining a thriving market town at the heart of this exceptional farming area.

We would like to welcome some new members to join our management team and help to maintain the Group’s activity. Currently the team is small (just five individual members supported by a producer and two town councillors).

We would also welcome new volunteers willing to become involved in a more general way, for example helping with a particular project or research, or with promotion and marketing including helping to develop the Group’s presence on social media. Continue reading “Ledbury Food Group asks would you like to help?”

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Non-Plastic Food Bags come to Ledbury

John Davenport, organic vegetable grower at Flights Orchard Farm, Little Marcle has finally acquired a prototype non-plastic food bag. Made in India from corn starch and hemp it will decompose fully in the compost bin. These are the first food-grade fully compostable bags John has sourced. They are suitable for keeping salad and other veg fresh and can also be heat-sealed.

John announced last week that “stronger, clear bags which fit on the packing ‘wicket’ have now arrived. They replace our plastic bags. They are considerably more expensive than plastic ones, but as more growers and retailers commit to such ecological packaging the price will come down.”

John believes he is the first local grower to source these bags and is delighted to be using them in his Vegetable Boxes.