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Writer's pictureAaryn Lynham

2018 Fall Flavours Festival

About

The Food Island Partnership is an organization dedicated to furthering the growth and profitability of PEI's food industry alongside its partners. One of their most successful initiatives is PEI's Fall Flavours Festival. One of the signature events is the PEI International Shellfish Festival.


Fall Flavours has successfully increased visitation during the fall shoulder season, has expanded to become province-wide and has grown from a nine-day celebration to a month-long showcase. This culinary celebration highlighting authentic PEI tastes and traditions marked its 10th anniversary in 2017 as one of the longest operating culinary festivals in Canada.


Project Overview

I wrote this client feature while working for ACOA for the agency-wide Rendezvous intranet (Maritime-wide, rather than PEI-specific). It was published August 2018 in anticipation of the Festival in September.

 

2018 Fall Flavours Festival to Showcase PEI Food, Culture and Coastal Communities


September may well be the best month to visit Canada's Food Island

The Food Island Partnership is an organization dedicated to furthering the growth and profitability of PEI's food industry alongside its partners. One of their most successful initiatives is PEI's Fall Flavours Festival.

Since 2007, Fall Flavours has successfully increased visitation during the fall shoulder season, has expanded to become province-wide and has grown from a nine-day celebration to a month-long showcase. This culinary celebration highlighting authentic PEI tastes and traditions marked its 10th anniversary in 2017 as one of the longest operating culinary festivals in Canada.


Fall Flavours also received the 2017 Food Trekking award and a nomination for the Canada Tourism Culinary Award. The Festival has evolved into the perfect backdrop to showcase Canada's Food Island and its finest products worldwide.


Benefits of the Fall Flavours Festival span across sectors. It acts as a draw for Tourism PEI, destination marketing organizations and regional tourism associations, fulfilling the Vision 2021 PEI Tourism strategy that highlights gastronomy as a key cultural tourism driver. The Festival also support commodity boards such as Atlantic Beef Products, the PEI Potato Board, Dairy Farmers of Canada, the PEI Fishermen's Association and more. Through its celebration of all things food, the Festival supports the renowned Culinary Institute of Canada in recruiting potential students who are enticed by world-class demonstrations.

The September-long festival features a variety of acclaimed guest chefs, who host a wide range of unique culinary experiences in communities across the Island. Signature events are designed as travel motivators by showcasing one of five core PEI products: mussels, lobster, beef, potatoes and oysters. These events engage celebrity chefs to create memorable visitor experiences through culinary demos and storytelling that highlights PEI culture.


The PEI International Shellfish Festival is one of Fall Flavours' signature events and runs September 13 to 16, 2018. This four-day Festival is packed with culinary demos, celebrity chefs, dining experiences and oyster shucking competitions. A new element of Fall Flavours, Taste of Coastal Communities, encourages people to attend the Festival from off-Island by showcasing PEI coastal communities. A celebrity chef prepares dishes to celebrate regional products, the people woh produce them, and the culture of each distinct community.


Fall Flavours and the PEI International Shellfish Festival have recruited 12 social media savvy Islanders with a passion for local food to build awareness of the 2018 events. The newly formed group boasts people from all walks of life including chefs, food producers, entrepreneurs, social media influencers, farmers and artisan producers.

Food Advocates (L-R) Shannon Courtney, Rebecca Sly, Ashley Condon, Alyssa Wooldridge & Stephanie McQuaid.

The 12 local food advocates attended social media training at Peak's Quay in Charlottetown recently to prepare for September. These Islanders have been tasked with sharing their local food stories on social media and will participate in various social media takeovers leading up to Festival events.


Rebecca Sly, a U.K., born chef who now calls PEI home is quoted saying,

"We are holding one of the world's best-kept foodie destinations in the palm of our hands ... I want to shout it from the rooftops and show the world what we have to offer. I am hoping this [local food advocate] role will help me become more involved with the community, help support the local food scene and spread the world about Canada's Food Island."

Fall Flavours has proved the perfect stage for festival travellers, members of the chef community and food advocates (or foodies) to exchange ideas about their passion through social media. By engaging local food advocates, the Food Island Partnership furthers its reach to entice visitors and locals to partake in Fall Flavours.


To learn more, buy tickets, or view the month-long schedule of events for the 2018 Fall Flavours Festival, please visit www.fallflavours.ca


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