Wild times as the Great British Game Food Festival hits Borough Market

Borough Market, the historic London food market, was the centrepiece of the wild game industry last Saturday (19th November) as 12 game related businesses supplied the crowds with a range of jaw-dropping British foods at the inaugural Great British Game Food Festival. Visitors to the market enjoyed both a range of produce, food and butchery demonstrations and information regarding wild game by the Countryside Alliance's Game to Eat campaign and The British Association for Shooting and Conservation's Taste of Game campaign.

From game charcuterie businesses, Great Glen Charcuterie and Real Cure, Mud Pies' award winning game pies, and Country Food Trust's game casserole, to hot food in the form of venison and game burgers, Buckland Venison and Wild Food Company, game broth from the Game Chef, and venison tartiflette and chilli with Cornish Venison, all washed down with Foxdenton sloe gin and Turners Cider.

Jack Knott, of the Game to Eat campaign, said:

"There are an estimated 60,000 visitors to Borough Market every day, to have that many passing through the game stalls is a fantastic achievement. To reach out to the public in their thousands and educate them in the taste and ease of cooking game is our mission and the Festival could not have proved more successful."

Richard Hunt, Taste of Game's Chef, said:

"Everyone was keen to try the dishes of all the game cooked, so lots of tasters were consumed. There were also lots of questions and interaction about how to cook it and for how long, which really gets the message of how versatile and easy game is out there"

Annette Cole, of the Taste of Game campaign, said:

"The interest in the general public for more information on wild game was inspiring, few other venues could have succeeded and been as successful as Borough Market. The cooking and butchery demonstrations, throughout the day also proved a huge draw, with hundreds enjoying pheasant being cooked up. We gave out over 4,000 recipe leaflets encouraging people to go home and cook game.

"The mixture of stall holders meant there was something for everyone, and it was fantastic to see everyone go away content and with a full stomach."