The members of the Good Energy team who were working at the Real Food Festival over the weekend could be easily tracked down in the office today by the delicious smells emanating from their desks, thanks to the tasty treats picked up from some of our fantastic fellow exhibitors. We’ve been enjoying pork pies and pasties, organic curry and pasta sauces, Cornish crisps doing their bit for charity and – oooh la la! – even some white truffle paste.
 
Of course it wasn’t all sampling and shopping. We worked hard in our low-carbon kitchen, meeting customers old and new. Whether it was due to our Carbon Challenge competition or the sunny smiles (and T-shirts) of the team, there was certainly plenty of interest and positive responses from the people at the festival. Many were already laden with bags stuffed full of local, natural food from the plethora of small suppliers there, so our message of buying your electricity from a community of small-scale energy farmers, all harnessing the natural power of the British weather to generate green power was one that resonated.

The stand looked great, with a striking kitchen unit kindly supplied by Source Antiques, bean bags for reenergising tired bodies and a colouring table for the kids (as well as the occasional adult).
 
The high point of the event was a cooking demo from green chef and social entrepreneur Arthur Potts Dawson, who gave a sneak preview of his recipe for Mackerel Ceviche with raw salad and sesame seeds to an eager crowd gathered in the Pride of Place Kitchen on Saturday.  We’ve been working with Arthur to create a Low-Carbon Kitchen guide which is out in a few weeks. The guide contains eight exclusive recipes that are low in carbon and high on taste, as well as tips on how to minimise energy use in the kitchen. Watch this space for details on where you can pick up a copy of the guide for yourself.
 
Thanks again to everyone who helped make the Festival such a success, particularly our partners Vintage Roots, Kernow Chocolate and Union Roast. If you didn’t make it along to the festival this weekend, there’ll be two more in September – in Bristol and at London’s South Bank. Hope to see you then.