Galway has been designated as one of two European Regions of Gastronomy for 2018.

Galway County Council is one of the lead partners of this project, along with Galway City Council, Galway Mayo Institute of Technology and Teagasc. As such, Galway County Council have joined the Sheep2018 committee to help give this year’s event a major food element.

Galway County Council said: “Food plays a critical role in all our lives in Galway, from farmer and fisherman to chef, restaurateur and consumer. Galway produces enough food to feed over 1.5m people which is testament to our local landscape. We boast over 12,000 farms, 689km of coastline, 52 islands and over 350 restaurants. Food and culture are at the centre of our regional fabric and is ingrained in all our lives.”

The council says the European designation has allowed Galway build on an already strong association to food production with a particular focus on bridging the gap between producers and consumers. Five key areas have been selected – education and health, linking urban and rural communities, cultural diversity, sustainability and feeding the planet, and finally supporting small to medium enterprises and innovation.

Sheep2018 demos

Demonstrations will intertwine with a food village that showcases local producers. The heritage office of Galway County Council, Galway community heritage, a number of heritage groups in the county of Galway and Galway Men’s Sheds will link up to provide a taste of the gastronomical heritage of the county. This includes a traditional kitchen and old-style shop display, churning of butter and bread making while traditional farming practices will be demonstrated through digging with a loy, old farm machinery, fishing boats and displays of artefacts and photos relating to food heritage from many different parts of the county.

There will also be children’s workshops along with music, song and dance. Topics ranging from food and sports to food waste and consumer health will be discussed .

BIA Innovator Campus

Details will also be announced of the new BIA Innovator Campus development which is planned on the site of Teagasc, Mellows Campus Athenry. The proposal is described as providing essential training and development space to meet the demands of the sector from entrepreneurs to chefs and food scientists. Measuring 2,301 square metres, the centre targets creating 360 jobs across in excess of 40 businesses and will deliver training, development and support to over 2,400 entrepreneurs. It is expected to deliver €11.5m in payroll to the region and the facilitation of the development of nearly 500 new products.

The campus is set to be made up of nine independent own-door starter/growth units, three independent own-door growth units and four unique co-working food incubators for dairy, meat, seafood and multi product.