Donegal’s food businesses will be hoping they can find the right combination of ingredients for success when judges from Ireland’s Foodie Destinations visit the county this weekend.
“The Food Coast – Donegal’s Good Food Initiative – was developed by Local Enterprise Office Donegal as a programme to support development, growth and quality in Donegal’s food sector. It is fantastic to see the intiative in the shortlisted finalists and to see Donegal Town also in the running,” he said.
“In a short space of time, The Food Coast has become a central platform for establishing Donegal as a ‘Food County’– a place with a vibrant food culture and food economy and that’s something we are determined to expand upon.” Public voting for the awards opened online on Wednesday, July 24, and an appeal has gone out to the people of Donegal to log on to voting page www.foodiedestinations.ie and vote for The Food Coast Donegal before the closing deadline of Tuesday, August 20. Earlier this year the county launched its 2019 list of the Food Coast Donegal’s Experiences and since then the county has been host to a hub of mouth-watering events to delight locals and visitors alike.
“Food plays an intrinsic role in the visit or experience and the series of food events we have in Donegal this year, offer a wide range of extraordinary experiences celebrating Donegal food and its champions,” Mr Tunney said.
Add to that the county’s growing array of nationally and internationally recognised chefs, as well as national and international successes and the Head of Enterprise suggests the fruits of the work being done by Food Coast Donegal is really starting to pay off.
“The vision of the Donegal Food Strategy has always been to collectively work together to make Donegal famous for food. To make the county recognised as a pioneering region for its approach to fostering and growing new start-up and existing food businesses. We have plans in place for more initiatives to keep this momentum going.”
The Head of Enterprise says everyone involved with the Food Coast is really looking forward to welcoming the judges and showcasing the best Donegal has to offer.
Local Enterprise Office Donegal is supported through co-funding from the Irish Government and the European Regional
Development Fund 2014 – 2020. To contact the Local Enterprise Office in Donegal, log on to www.localenterprise.ie/donegal or phone (074) 9160735.
