Holkham Estate hosts Norfolk's first virtual food festival

The Holkham Estate in Norfolk will host a virtual food festival on Sunday with a host of chefs and food experts taking to the stage.

Demonstrations will take place live from Holkham Hall with a series of cookery presentations, interviews and behind the scenes footage of local and national chefs championing Norfolk's suppliers and produce.

The event is in partnership with Charlie's Norfolk Food Heroes, Cookery Live, Walsingham Farms Shop and Feast Norfolk and in aid of charity Hospitality Action.

The festival aims to showcase the importance of supporting local food and drink suppliers and will feature the butchers, bakers, fishmongers and farm shops who have rallied around the local community during the Covid-19 lockdown. Confirmed producers include Mrs Temple's Cheese, Staithe Smokehouse, Yare Valley Oils, Sandringham Apple Juice, Black Shuck, Candi's Chutneys, Currylicious, Give It Some Beans, Wild Knight Distillery and many more.

The event will be hosted by chef Charlie Hodson, founder of Charlie's Norfolk Food Heroes (pictured). Sara Matthews from Sara By Nature will demonstrate a gluten-free brunch at 9am, followed by Fran Hartshorne, executive chef of the White Horse in Brancaster.

Scott Dougal, chef-patron of the Wells Crab House, Johnny Payne of Coxford Butchers, Chris Mann, head chef of Titchwell Manor, Michael Chamberlain, executive head chef of the Victoria Inn at Holkham Estate, and Ben Handley, chef-patron of the Duck Inn at Stanhoe, complete the line-up.

Mark Lewis, chief executive of Hospitality Action, said: "It's almost a year to the day since the Hospitality Action team last visited the Holkham Estate, when we paid tribute to the late Nyall Brown and marked Hospitality Action's launch in the East of England with a fabulous fundraising dinner. To be returning, albeit virtually, is an honour especially as it's the setting for Norfolk's first virtual food festival.

"In the last year our country, and our industry have changed beyond all recognition. But one constant is our collective commitment to the wellbeing of the most vulnerable in our industry and a desire to support them as we return to work and come to terms with a new normality."

Hodson, added: "We are delighted to be launching Norfolk's first ever virtual food festival. Unfortunately, most foodie festivals across the country have had to cancel this year, so we were keen to offer the many people who will miss these events something to get their teeth stuck into, quite literally! We can't thank Holkham, partners, chefs and producers enough for getting behind the venture, and we hope to raise important funds for Hospitality Action in the process – a charity very close to my heart."

To access the festival, visit the Holkham Facebook page from 9am on 14 June.

To make a donation to Hospitality Action, visit: https://www.hospitalityaction.org.uk/donate/