Food festivals come and go, even the well-established ones have suffered a downturn recently.
But some of the smaller, quirkier ones have survived, often through the efforts of volunteers and local businesses working together to celebrate the best of British food and drink.
Here are 13 of the best food festivals in the UK you won’t want to miss, and if you have, put a note in your diary for next year.
Wakefield Rhubarb Festival
Be the first to celebrate the new season every February and paint the town pink!
Part of the famous Yorkshire Rhubarb or Tusky Triangle, which runs between Leeds, Bradford and Wakefield, the town is famous for its early arrival of forced rhubarb.
Originally from Siberia, rhubarb thrives in Yorkshire, which either says something about rhubarb’s adaptability or the Yorkshire weather!
The market includes everything rhubarb-flavoured, including gins, jams, pickles, cheese, desserts and cakes.
Rye Bay Scallop Week
Held in February each year in the East Sussex coastal town of Rye, you can get shucking in local restaurants as they showcase an array of different scallop dishes.
We know from fossils that scallops have been around for more than three million years, and the shell has been part of heraldry and symbolism for centuries.
Did you also know there are more than 300 species of scallop in the world, and you can tell the age of a scallop by the number of rings on its shell?
Ginger and Spice Festival
A free community festival in Market Drayton in Shropshire, exploring the town’s culinary heritage and social history.
Every September locals and visitors flock to the Spicy Artisan Market, full of delectable sweet and savoury treats including the town’s famous gingerbread, baked here for over 200 years.
The Dalemain World Marmalade Awards
Run by volunteers, this festival is held at Dalemain Mansion in Cumbria every April to celebrate the best marmalades.
Judging starts in January and the competition is fierce until the eventual winner is announced. Marmalade jars spill out of every part of the house during the event, along with talks, expert panels and tasting of marmalades from around the world.
York Chocolate Festival
You must have heard of the famous chocolatiers, Terry’s of York? They’re the inventors of the universally adored chocolate orange.
Well, that’s just one of the many confections celebrated each April in the city’s Chocolate Festival along with tastings, treats and demonstrations.
Cromer Crab and Lobster Festival
Pork Belly loves a good Cromer crab and sings the praises of his native county’s signature delicacy.
Each May, the North Norfolk town puts on a show to celebrate all things crabby with cooking demos, stalls and live music.
Pershore Plum Festival
Every August, this Worcestershire community comes together to celebrate all things plum related, and the town goes plum crazy in a purple haze.
The area’s been famous for fruit since medieval times. Early in the 19th century the Pershore Yellow Egg Plum was found growing wild in Tiddesley Wood and by 1870 records show that over 900 tons of the fruit were being sent to market during harvest time.
Today, local orchards produce popular plums like Victoria and Marjorie Seedling, alongside the local varieties.
London Coffee Festival
Looking for some caffeine-fuelled fun? Then head for the Truman Brewery in London every May for coffee, cocktails, craft and community.
You can also watch champion baristas compete to be the best brew master and see astonishing latte art created in front of your eyes.
Cheese and Chilli Festivals
The Cheese and Chilli Festival is the only show in the UK which celebrates both cheese and chilli within a festival setting.
Held in five locations in the south of England from May to July, you can taste raw chillis, pickles and sauces alongside a whole host of local cow, sheep and goat cheeses.
And, for the very brave, there’s a chilli eating contest.
Isle of Wight Garlic Festival
Garlic lovers unite at the island’s biggest summer show in August.
Founded in 1983, it hosts star chefs, musicians, charities and businesses, all served up with a generous dollop of garlic!
You’ll find the pungent bulb everywhere, and if you don’t want to eat, drink and stink, there are plenty of local sweet delicacies to try including cupcakes, fudge and honey.
Clovelly Lobster and Crab Feast
Clovelly is a picturesque fishing village in Devon.
Every May, they hold a seaweed festival, promoting the nutritional and health benefits of this rarely harvested foodstuff.
But the main event is in September when the village celebrates its famous, sustainably caught, lobsters and crabs. There’s live folk music, cookery demonstrations, craft stalls and beer tasting alongside street theatre, close-up magic, and balloon modelling!
Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival
Sturminster Newton, in the heart of Dorset’s Blackmore Vale, was referred to by Thomas Hardy as ‘The vale of little dairies’.
The local creamery has produced award-winning cheeses for decades, and in 1999 they began a festival to celebrate the best in cheese.
The festival has grown since then and every September features over 150 food and craft stalls.
And cheese.
Lots of cheese.
Stranraer Oyster Festival
Celebrating Scotland’s last remaining wild oysters, every September with celebrity chef demos, live music, and the Scottish Oyster Shucking Championships where producers, fishermen and industry professionals battle it out against the clock.
There’s a huge bar with oysters freshly landed on the shores of Loch Ryan.
If you have a favourite fascinating food festival, let us know in the comments so we can check it out and add it to our list.
Where to next?
• The Garlic Story
• Delicious facts about chocolate
• Cupcake or muffin?