Page 40 - Naked Foodies - July 2021

Every year since it’s inception in 2012, the Universal Cookery & Food Festival (ucff) founded by well-known chefs John Feeney, Lee Maycock and Ian Nottage, and event organiser Billie Moore, managing director of McCullough Moore, has been going that extra mile to enlighten chefs and foodies about local and global trends at this out-doorable event.
With its eclectic mix of exhibitors’ innovative products, cookery demonstrations, workshops, live debates on key issues within the industry, and foraging tours under the supervision of experts such as beekeeper and forager Colin Wheeler-James around the specially chosen venue, ucff offers a unique culinary experience that attracts hundreds of like-minded food and drink aficionados and gives them an opportunity to connect more with each other.
Under its nickname ‘Glastonbury for Chefs’ the ucff has travelled around the UK to highlight local producers’ high quality products and spread the words of experts on topics of the moment, and this year will be no different with Mudwalls Farm in Alcester, Warwickshire, being the destination for the festival on September 14 2021.
Mudwalls Farm managing director George Beach has been a long-time fan of the festival, so when Ian Nottage was looking for a venue for 2021, he suggested the farm, which supplies high quality fresh produce and fine food.
The farm will now be showcasing apples and plums growing at that time of the year – maybe even picking them – and a little veg production. “We will also host foraging and clay pigeon shooting on the farm,” says Beach.
This year the ucff is streaming live to promote all the action, while in the run up to the festival the ucff community is regularly being updated via a newsletter and its ‘virtual pub’ offering ‘#ucffchefbanter’, which now has a cult following. A message goes out on social media to say when it’s happening and renowned food and drink broadcaster Nigel Barden hosts the event, which also has a different guest speaker each time.
This year, for the first time ever, leading British associations have united with the ucff under the banner ‘Together we are Stronger’. These include the British Culinary Federation, Master Chefs of Great Britain, Craft Guild of Chefs, Royal Academy of Culinary Arts, Hospitality Action, Academy of Food & Wine Service – part of the Institute of Hospitality, Association of Pastry Chefs, and the Welsh Culinary Association.
Matt Owen, chairman of the Craft Guild of Chefs, thinks that offering something that enables chefs to re-engage will be brilliant for them and ucff is a great event for its members to attend.
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