This article first appeared in our World Environment Day issue of My Green Pod Magazine, published on 02 June 2022. Click here to subscribe to our digital edition and get each issue delivered straight to your inbox
Valley Fest, the best-tasting music festival in the South West, is shaping up to be a lot of fun.
Now in its eighth year, the festival will take place 04-07 August near Bristol. Headliners of the family-friendly food and music festival include Travis, Clean Bandit, Kosheen, Faithless (DJ set) Roni Size and The Craig Charles Funk and Soul Club – yet consistently, the biggest crowd-pleaser of all is the view.
Edged by the rolling Mendip Hills, Chew Valley Lake provides the sparkling backdrop.
Josh Eggleton, chef patron of the multi-award winning restaurant The Pony Chew Valley (previously the Michelin-starred Pony & Trap), has curated the food programme. From feasts, cooking demonstrations and Sunday sampling sessions, Valley Fest has everything a food lover could want.
Catering for all tastes and budgets – with added theatre and fire – the menu has quality and regeneration at its heart.
The Friday Feast lineup includes Rob Howell of Root, a Bib Gourmand winner. Saturday’s session is headed up by Josh Eggleton with guest chef Jude Kereama of Kota – prepare for sexy seafood galore!
Sunday’s menu will be a three-course regeneratively raised roast prepared by Josh Eggleton, Toby Gritten of the Pump House and Hannah Catley of Lockdown Loaves. Each will champion the finest produce the South West has to offer.
The sizzling and smoking-hot Cooking over Fire demonstration will include Pete Sanchez of Michelin-starred Casamia, Paco Tapas, Decimo London and many other award-winning chefs from the South West.
For 2022 Valley Fest has joined forces with Arcadia, the world-famous performing arts collective known for its 50ft fire-spitting spider – a Glastonbury Festival icon. The team will bring its Afterburner stage (main image) to Valley Fest 2022.
During the day there will be a whole range of kids’ activities created by the Woodland Tribe. When night falls, expect a massive party, plus the Lords of Lightning’s Tesla coil show and new, boundary-pushing fire performances.
Also new for 2022 is the Regenerative Farming Area, sponsored by Yeo Valley. Here inspiring speakers will explain how we can heal a broken food system, repair a damaged planet and empower farmers and people to eat their way to a better future, through regenerative organic
farming. This is for those hungry for hope.
‘With world-class acts, gorgeous gourmet spreads plus lots of regeneratively raised local produce, this is the finest programme we’ve ever had. We are the regeneration. Come, be part of it and get on my land!’
LUKE HASELL
Valley Fest founder
Festival tickets cost £170 (plus booking fee), which can be paid in instalments. Click here to book.
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