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THE Isle of Man Food and Drink Festival has been a big success this weekend.
This was the third time the festival has been held and this year it moved to the Nunnery in Douglas from the Villa Marina Gardens.
There have been numerous cooking demonstrations in the Manx Food Theatre which have been a huge hit with the public.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. Bringing you the latest Food & Drink news from the Isle of Man.
Highlights have included appearances by Saturday Kitchen star James Martin and former MasterChef semi-finalist Stacie Stewart.
There have also been live demonstrations from Manx producers including Greeba Mushrooms, Heron and Brearley, Tanroagan restaurant and the Individual Cake Company.
A wide range of Manx produce – from vegetables to confectionery to Manx beer and cider – has been available for sale.
The event has had something for all the family – with butter making, Manx music and dance and festival farm visits among the attractions.
Touch tanks containing crabs and lobster proved to be popular, as did the Loaghtan sheep.
There were spinners doing demonstrations on Saturday and beekeepers have had a presence at the festival as well.
The finals of the I Love Manx family chef and professional chef competitions were also held during the weekend.
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THOUSANDS of visitors are expected to attend this weekend’s new-look Isle of Man Food & Drink Festival which moves to a new venue this year in the grounds of The Nunnery.
Car parking has been a problem for organisers of the festival, now in its third year, and the move to the Nunnery is expected to make access much easier for the public.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. Bringing you the latest Food & Drink news from the Isle of Man.
Visitors can expect two days of gastronomic delights with over 40 stallholders taking part in this year’s Festival on Saturday and Sunday.
Many producers will be offering tastings, from cheese to fudge, and spring water to ham and there will be opportunities to stock up on a wide range of foodie goodies, all produced on the Island.
Hungry Festival goers can enjoy queenies, a hog roast bap or a wealth of other delicious refreshments. There are many activities to experience as well, from watching a cookery demonstration in the Manx Food Theatre to enjoying the Mushroom Experience or chatting to the producers.
Celebrity chef James Martin, host of the highly popular ‘Saturday Kitchen’ live on BBC every weekend will be at the Festival on Sunday, using Manx produce in his cookery demonstrations in the Manx Food Theatre.
He is also judging the I love Manx professional cook of the year competition on Sunday afternoon at 3pm and will be providing a number of cooking demonstrations from 11am. He will also be signing books later in the afternoon.
Masterchef semi finalist Stacie Stewart will be giving cooking demonstrations on Saturday morning and again in the afternoon.
The festival ends on Sunday afternoon with an auction of Manx food at 4.30pm which will benefit Manx Radio’s Dreamcatcher appeal fund.
Manx producers taking part this year include Apple Orphanage, Cocoa Red Chocolate, Green Mann Spring Water, Individual Cake Co, Isle of Man Creamery, Mostly Manx, My Grandmother’s Cookery Book, The Original Manx Fudge Company, Roberto’s Ice Cream. Smoothie Bike, Bryan Radcliffe, Davison’s Ice Cream, Staarvey Farm, Abfab Cakes, IOM Beekeepers’ Association, Jimbo’s Ice Cream, Laxey Glen Flour Mill, Lewis Seafood, Manx Organic Network, Ellerslie Oil and Radcliffe’s Butchers.
Activities include scone making, foodie games, 3-legged kipper tossing, quizzes, family recipe exchange,
The festival is jointly run by the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture and Isle of Man Tourism. It opens tomorrow (Saturday) at 10.45 am when DEFA Minister John Shimmin and Tony Nicholls, managing director of sponsor Manx Gas, will perform the honours.
SATURDAY:
10.45: Official Opening
11.00: Masterchef’s Stacie Stewart
12.15: Tanroagan
13.00: Kathryn Sentance
14.00: Masterchef’s Stacie Stewart
15.00: Final of I Love Manx Family Chef competition
SUNDAY:
10.45: Official Opening
11.00: James Martin
12.15: The Old Courthouse
13.00: Heron and Brearley
13.35: The Individual Cake Company
14.00: James Martin
15.00: Final of I Love Manx professional chef competition
16.00: James Martin book signing
16.30: Auction of Manx food
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Final plans are now in place for the 2011 Isle of Man Food & Drink Festival which is being held in the Nunnery Gardens, Douglas on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th September, opening at 10am daily.
Full programme details can be found on the Festival website www.gov.im/food_festival including the mouth watering recipes which will be cooked by MasterChef semi-finalist Stacie Stewart and “Saturday Kitchen” presenter James Martin. These recipes will be made with Manx ingredients wherever possible and have been chosen to showcase the range and quality of locally produced dairy products, meat, vegetables, seafood, oil and more. These unique recipes have been made available with the kind permission of the two guest chefs.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. We will be at the Isle of Man Food & Drink Festival – hope to see you there!
The Festival promises a full and exciting day out for the family, with plenty of choices for eating out, opportunities to taste and buy from producers in two large marquees and activities for children including seeing touch tanks of marine life; making scones, face painting, and playing foodie games in the activity marquee and watching butter being made or having a go at milking a pretend cow. There are more things to see and do in the Manx Mushroom Experience marquee and, with a number of new products being launched, the organisers hope that the Festival will indeed be a wonderful celebration of the Island’s food and drink.
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Douglas Borough Council is, once again, taking the lead in helping rid the island of litter by organising this year’s Big Tidy Up all-Island Challenge.
Taking place on Friday September 30 and Saturday October 1, and sponsored by Alliance and Leicester International, the challenge builds on the success of last year’s campaign when a total of 2.167 tonnes of litter was collected, of which 750kg was recycled.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. We bring you Green news from the Isle of Man.
In a move to involve communities Island-wide the Council has contacted every local authority inviting them to participate with, to date, Castletown, Maughold and Patrick agreeing to join the campaign, which last year attracted vigorous support from volunteer groups, charitable organisations, businesses, private individuals and an exceptionally strong showing from schools.
As the campaign’s lead body the Council will provide practical support in the form of protective tabards, litter picks, gloves, brushes and bags. It will also collect all litter gathered and bagged in the Borough of Douglas.
Alliance and Leicester International’s community affairs manager George Campbell said: ‘Alliance and Leicester International takes its corporate social responsibility and active citizenship roles very seriously. We’re therefore pleased to be supporting the Council’s endeavours in its Island-wide call to action to tackle the litter that blights our towns and villages. As one of Douglas’s leading businesses we are keen to play our part in keeping the capital clean and green and would urge other companies to join with us and make a stand against litter and demonstrate that, like Alliance and Leicester International they, too, care about the quality of their environment.’
Council Leader Councillor David Christian JP said: ‘Response last year was extremely encouraging. Clearly the campaign captured the public mood, as we hope it will this year when once again it will be supported by Council Members, officers and staff.
‘We are encouraged that DLEQ (District Local Environmental Quality) surveys indicate that in many categories Douglas is equal to or above national standards, but we can ill-afford to be complacent so are urging people to contact us about any litter “hotspots” they have identified.
‘Our cleansing teams are to be applauded for their efforts. However, given these difficult financial times local authorities have only limited resources with which to combat litter, so we welcome this annual opportunity for people to come together and help make a very real difference to the environment in which they live and work. The Big Tidy Up all-Island Challenge not only makes for a cleaner and greener Isle of Man but also is a practical demonstration of the “Big Society” agenda which aims to encourage local action and give communities the power to transform aspects of their lives.’
A typical Big Tidy Up session will last in the region of two hours. Participating groups will receive certificates recognising their support at a reception later this year hosted by the Mayor of Douglas, Councillor Ritchie McNicholl, JP.
For all Big Tidy Up enquiries and to submit details of potential litter hotspots for targeting contact pmacken@douglas.gov.im .
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The Isle of Man Department of Economic Development has today announced the launch of a 0% green business loan scheme.
The Department says the scheme offers a 100% loan of up to £20,000 towards the cost of projects that improve energy efficiency and is open to all business sectors where projects will involve energy efficiency improvements in Isle of Man business premises.
Each project will be assessed on its potential to deliver energy savings and preference will be given to those that provide the greatest reduction in CO2 emission. Projects deemed suitable range from lighting/ lighting controls to compressed air systems/ controls to insulation upgrades.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. We bring you Green news from the Isle of Man.
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Isle of Man economists are hoping to attract more green energy companies to the island, as global investment reaches a record high.
A recent UN report showed current investment in renewable energy sources to be around £132bn.
There are currently about 100 "clean tech" companies based on the island and work is continuing to attract more.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. We bring you Green news from the Isle of Man.
Ken Milne, from the department of economic development, said businesses could benefit from local marine skills.
He said: "With the decline of the island’s fishing industry there could be some welcome employment opportunities for people with experience at sea.
"If some of these companies are involved in marine renewables, the Isle of Man will be well placed to provide experienced crew."
The Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment 2011 report, which was prepared for the UN by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, claims the boom is set to continue and the Manx government believes it is well-placed to become a green industry centre.
Mr Milne said: "I think the industry is a natural fit for the island.
"Among other things we can offer prospective companies an established manufacturing industry, which sets us apart from the Channel islands."
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COLLINS Stewart Wealth Management is sponsoring the Small Medium Enterprise of the Year Award at this year’s Isle of Man Newspapers’ Awards for Excellence.
Green Mann Spring offer Pure Spring Water bottled fresh from the heart of the Island. We bring you Green news from the Isle of Man.
Dermot Hamill, head of wealth management Isle of Man, said that the company was delighted to be once more involved with the awards.
‘We’ve been sponsors of the awards right from the outset and we’re very happy to support the event,’ he said.
‘I think it’s great because it shows a lot of what’s very good about the Isle of Man, and shows the island in a very positive light.
‘It also brings a lot of attention to people who wouldn’t ordinarily get that attention and it’s just very nice to be involved – there’s real “feel-good” factor.
‘This year we are sponsoring the Small Medium Enterprise of the Year Award and it will be very interesting to see what the entries are. It will be nice to present the award to a business which is dynamic and outgoing.’
Last year’s winner of the Small Medium Enterprise Award was Green Mann Spring Water.
Shane Martin who collected the award on behalf of the family company said: ‘It helped us from a sales point of view because it was very reassuring for people to see that we had achieved this at such an early stage in the business.
‘The process of entering also made us realise what we’d achieved. When you’re so busy all the time, you don’t really forget, but when you sit down to fill in the entry forms, it does really bring it to light when you have to put it down on paper.’
l Has your company entered the Isle of Man Newspapers’ Awards for Excellence?
There are 16 award categories, covering companies of all sizes, public sector organisations, charities and individuals. You can find all the details at www.iomtoday.co.im
Entries close on September 19.
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 At Ballabrooie, the home of Green Mann Spring we believe in and support a sustainable self sufficient community on the Island.
So on our blog we will be bringing you Green News from the Isle of Man to support all environmental initiatives on the Island, with a focus on:
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Featured Product Review from Isle of Man Food.com
I got myself a couple of bottles of the Green Mann Spring water to try. This is a local water from the lowlands of Ballbrooie, not far from St Johns. What it says on the bottle is that the rain that falls on the Slieau Whallin hill runs down to create subterranean streams into Ballabrooie and these waters then rise up hundreds of feet below ground to make a pure natural water, all of which does sound rather nice! Not being a water expert I chilled the bottle in the fridge overnight, I did once hear that most of the flavour of water is determined by the temperature!. After chilling I cracked open the Grolsch like bottle seal (like the ones we used to collect as key rings when we were younger!) and poured a nice glass. It was really pretty good – for water anyway. It tasted crisp and fresh for a still spring water. I don’t think I will be buying it all the time as I don’t mind the local tap water, but for the occasional dinner party or gathering I think I will definitely get a few bottles and it comes in still or sparkling as well which is good.
Gourmet Shark verdict – quirky bottle with a nice clean fresh taste. Definite thumbs up and hope people at least give it a try.
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AN MHK is calling for all government departments and boards to use Manx bottled water.
David Cannan (Michael) says it is an ‘outrage’ that so much taxpayers’ money is spent on imported water from the UK.
The Isle of Man Examiner reported last month that just under 75,000 was spent by government departments, offices and statutory boards on water coolers in the last financial year. Most use imported bottled water.
This figure for the sum splashed out by taxpayers was revealed in response to one of a series of freedom of information requests submitted to the government by Isle of Man Newspapers.
Mr Cannan, who was previously chairman of the Water Authority, has written to the chief executives of all departments and boards requesting that, if they have to use bottled water, then they should make sure it is Manx bottled water.
He wrote: ‘I am becoming increasingly irritated when I visit government departments and statutory boards when I see large amounts of bottled water imported from Buxton and other parts of the UK in water coolers and available in bottles at meetings.
‘The Isle of Man is spending millions of pounds on promoting the Isle of Man and Manx products yet departments of government and statutory boards are spending money buying bottles of UK water.’
He told iomtoday: ‘It is an outrage that so much taxpayers’ money is spent purchasing bottled water from the UK when there is an abundant supply of the local product both bottled and natural.
‘It is important that the Isle of Man Government purchase Isle of Man products wherever possible and support the local economy.’
Mr Cannan included with his letters a brochure about Green Mann Spring Water although he has stressed he has no links at all to any suppliers of Manx bottled water.
He said that, depending on the response he receives from his letters, he will raise a question in Tynwald on the issue.
But he said the response from departments so far suggested there may already be a change of policy on bottled water.
David Killip, chief executive of the Department of Health and Social Security, told him in his reply that the department’s chief operating officer was currently reviewing the extent of the use of imported bottled water.
The DHSS spent 7,581 on cooled drinking water machines in 2008-09, many of the water coolers located in public areas in hospitals, health centres, clinics and residential homes.
Mr Killip added: ‘It does need to be recognised, however, that in some instances water is provided for clinical/patient benefit reasons. Nonetheless, it is very helpful to know of the local supplier.
‘The department will remain committed to the procurement and promotion of Isle of Man products.’
Mr Cannan said he was pleased to see some departments were now using Manx water: ‘The message is getting home. But if I continue to see in the next two to three months more and more Buxton water, I will be asking in Tynwald whether the Council of Ministers supports buying Manx.
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