BUDE for Food Festival returned to the Castle Grounds in Bude last weekend, hosting a variety of events, including cookery demonstrations, comedy and a music showcase, writes Zoë Uglow.

The festival focuses on a celebration of good food and displayed the talents of many local chefs in the ‘Demonstration Kitchen’, sponsored by Chadds Foodsmiths, and a variety of exhibitions by Cornish producers.

Along with local cuisine the festival offered a ‘Global Street Foods’ area, which brought an opportunity for locals to try dishes from other countries and cultures, including Thailand, Mexico and the Caribbean.

It has proved to be a popular festival, as the numbers attending last weekend increased on last year’s tally, the first festival, when there were around 7,000 visitors.

With this rise comes an increase in tourism for the region and the event has helped provide support for businesses in the Bude area.

The festival was organised and run by local volunteers, who gave up their spare time to help make the event a success.

Bude for Food is a non-profit organisation, therefore any money that was made this weekend has either been reinvested into the development of the festival or donated to ensure beneficial activities and projects can be set up in the local community.