The Hotel School in GMIT will host the first national Foodie Forum on Thursday February 2. The event will be an interactive one-day experience which will showcase the abundance and variety of excellent local and artisan produce available in Ireland. The event aims to support local food businesses and promote consumer sustainability.
The forum will include a series of masterclasses with leading chefs and seminars by well known and established industry professionals. Visitors can experience micro-breweries and participate in food and wine workshops coupled with an indoor market of local producers. An impressive line-up of contributors has joined The Foodie Forum team in their quest to educate on the importance of the provenance of food, the support of local suppliers, and the use of seasonal Irish food.
The event in GMIT’s Hotel School at the Dublin Road campus will conclude with a celebratory culinary dining experience, prepared by Hotel School lecturers and students.
This initiative by three GMIT Hotel School lecturers, Jacinta Dalton, Cormac Handy, and Colin Gilligan, with support by the Hotel School, has been pitched on Twitter to like-minded foodies and is already gaining momentum.
Cáit Noone, head of the GMIT Hotel School, believes this event is a great opportunity to showcase the excellent work of local and artisan food and beverage producers in the west of Ireland and beyond, and is an appropriate prelude to the Volvo Ocean Race which will arrive in Galway in the summer of 2012.
“At the launch of the countdown to the Volvo Ocean Race the team announced the four main pillars of the race next summer – marine, green, innovation, and food,” Ms Noone said. “The food pillar will provide Ireland with a global showcase opportunity to share with the world our food experiences and the outstanding locally sourced produce we have to offer. The event in the Hotel School in GMIT will provide an introduction to the many wonderful culinary experiences visitors to Galway can expect next summer.”
The Foodie Forum is open to the public and industry colleagues and is set to attract a large number of visitors. Those wishing to attend the event must register their interest at tiny.cc/foodieforum Tickets for the event will be available from January 9 to 20 only.
Tickets for entrance to the event are €10 and tickets for the event and the celebratory dinner are €35. Call Margaret at the GMIT Hotel School, phone (091 ) 742249 for information regarding ticket payment. Students with a valid ID student card will be admitted free to the day event if they bring their identification along on the day.
For regular updates follow the team on @thefoodieforum and find TheFoodieForum on Facebook.
