Don’t worry if you’re veggie or vegan (or just interested in making a change), we’ve got you covered; we have an array of veggie- and vegan-friendly events and stalls to keep you busy over the festival weekend.
Join bestselling author of two vegan cookery books Katy Beskow, aka Little Miss Meat Free, in our very own Cookery School as she shows you how to rustle up a simple and delectable meal in mere moments. She is passionate about local, seasonal produce and loves making vibrant and flavourful vegan food packed with exciting textures and colours – you can be sure the recipes in this class will meet the criteria!
Never fear if you don’t fancy getting involved, as we have two tastings to keep your weekend full of flavour. Both are centred around fermented foods: Food for a Happy Gut with Naomi Devlin, River Cottage tutor and fermentation expert, on Saturday will be showing you the benefits of these foods for your health and wellbeing; and on Sunday, chef and author Thom Eagle will be taking you beyond kimchi at a variety of fermented foods from historical and international cuisines. Take your pick(le) – we’re certain you won’t want to miss either of these!
All our chef demos are free with your wristband this year, so look out for this year’s guest chefs cooking up a storm of veggie and vegan delights and learn some top recipes to take home. Head over to the Market Hall Stage and join Zoe Adjonyoh of Zoe’s Ghana Kitchen as she shows you how to cook some simple and scrumptious vegan summer food, or how about joining cook, writer and stylist Anna Jones to learn a few wonderful ways to cook summer vegetables. If you don’t manage to make your way to the Market Hall, Head Chef at the Riverford Field Kitchen Patrick Hanna will be showing festival-goers how to cook up some tasty seasonal veg over fire at the Castle.
We have two incredible veg focused feasts to keep your evenings full. On Saturday, Skye Gyngell will be bringing her Scratch menu of unloved food to Abergavenny, creating delicious dishes using ingredients that are often overlooked, and produce that’s wrongly considered ‘waste’. Or how about Riverford’s Pop-Up Feast with their founder and farmer Guy Singh-Watson on Festival Friday, using their own farm-grown organic veg to create a plethora of mouth-watering, seasonal vegetarian dishes.
If your bellies are still full the day after either (or both!) of these fantastic feasts – we’re quite sure they will be – satiate your mind and learn more about veganism with our great talks and debates on offer over the weekend: champion of the vegan movement and award-winning journalist Grace Dent will be revealing her secret life and passions as The Guardian’s newest restaurant critic; author of Dead Zone: Where the Wild Things Were Philip Lymbery will be discussing the implications of our choice of milk in his Borough Theatre event; and free with your festival wristband, on Saturday the Great Debate at The Farmyard will be discussing The Rise in Veganism.
Finally, look out for these stalls around the festival, among many others, showcasing some wonderful veggie and vegan foods and drinks to fill your tums, or tables at home:
- Samosaco: A leading producer of veggie and vegan snacks like samosas, bhajees, vegetarian sausages and much more
- Le Bao: Bao buns with a modern flare, and many vegan options to chomp your way through
- The Parsnipship: Unique and original vegetarian and vegan food
- The Fritter Shack: A veggie/vegan food company passionate about all things sustainable and green
- Wil’s Smokehouse: Serious tasty smoked organic vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free foods with attitude
- Filbert’s Fine Foods: Artisan producer of wholly natural premium snacks
- Easy Bean: Artisan chickpea crispbread and bean & seed crackers, and other savoury snacks
- Parc y Dderwen: Fermented foods for a happy gut and a healthy mind (if you didn’t have enough at the tastings!)
- Moist: Bristol-based hummus producer
- The Lemonade Lady: An AFF staple, The Lemonade Lady offers freshly squeezed iced lemonade
- Boss Brewing: Vegan beers from a Swansea-based craft brewery
Keep your eyes peeled for the vast range of other stalls who have veggie and vegan options galore!