The Ludlow Food Centre, Bromfield celebrated the country’s official Apple Day, October, 20, with a weekend of fun family activities and tutored tastings.
The centre itself is the home to hundreds of local food and drink lines from Shropshire, Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Powys.
Amongst the fun, regional apple growers, Breighton Manor offered visitors the chance to try a wide range of locally grown fruit, and Mill Orchards showcased its famous logo apples, made using a natural sunlight technique. Brook Farm Cider handed out free tastings of its quality cider and perry.
On Sunday, Court Farm of Tillington demonstrated the difference in flavour between classic English varieties such as Cox, Falstaff, Red Devil and Russet, whilst Teme Valley Fruit gave an insight into how its traditionally pressed, Gold award winning apple juice is made. A selection of organic and non-organic ciders were available to sample from Clee Hill’s Mahorall Cider and Butford Farm of Bodenham.
The centre’s own in-house producers cooked up a range of treats using locally grown fruit, including apple pies and crumbles, pork and apple burgers, apple chutney and an extra special apple sorbet.
“We are so lucky to have dozens of old English apple varieties grown in the region that taste great and are so versatile,” said Sandy Boyd, managing director of the centre. “Buying British means we not only help to preserve our historic orchards, which remain under threat, but it also helps cut down on harmful emissions created by transporting fruit from the other side of the world.”
