Foodcamp 2012 Open For Registration

Foodcamp 2012, taking place at this year’s Savour Kilkenny food festival, is now open for registration. Tickets are free but you must register in advance to attend. Foodcamp’s return to Kilkenny this year finds itself back in the Kilkenny Ormonde Hotel where Foodcamp kicked off in October 2010. Register here to attend.

Foodcamp will run on Friday October 26 from 9am to 5pm.

What Happens On The Day

Well, in the spirit of all things unconference (that’s an informal, non-stuffy conference, don’t you know), a whole bunch of food lovers – whether producers, bloggers, brewers, suppliers, writers or general enthusiasts – get together for one day to meet, talk, share experiences and lessons learned with the primary focus being on food. Talks in the past have ranged from food packaging to starting out in the food business, foraging to pig farming and more besides.

The afternoon this year is given over to two events – Origin Green with Bord Bia and the closing panel discussion for the day titled Taking Back Our Food – Avoiding A Delicious Disaster which will be chaired by John McKenna.

The Indoor Picnic

Wedged between the morning talks (some which are still to be confirmed) is the big picnic lunch. When you register for Foodcamp, as with previous years, you are encouraged to bring lunch for yourself and at least one other. All of the food gets laid out for service in the hotel at lunchtime and everyone eats what everyone else brought – from duck to salmon to cheese, beer, biscuits, cakes, sausage rolls – whatever is going. It’s a great chance to sit down, have something of a home-cooked lunch and catch up with faces new and old.

Sign Up As A Speaker

While registration is open for attendees, it’s also open for those interested in speaking. Speaking slots are not sales pitches, it’s not about how good, bad or indifferent your company or product is, it’s about your lessons, advice, information and experience. Have you something to share that could help someone open a cafe, care for their garden, take a product to market? If you do, then consider signing up for a speaking slot, available in 40 minute segments. There’s 12 in total compared to 24 last year so get in quick here.

I’ll be manning the fort over at Foodcamp.ie for a few weeks. If you’d like to get involved, then drop me a line or check out Foodcamp.ie for details.