2022 News and events

When: 25 - 26 October 2023 Where: International Convention Centre (ICC Wales), The Celtic Manor Resort, Newport, Wales What: Brokerage between buyers and food and drink businesses; VIP dinner and networking opportunities; seminars, sustainable futures and exhibition. Wales’ international food and drink trade event, BlasCymru/TasteWales, will take place on 25 and 26 October 2023, Rural Affairs Minister Lesley Griffiths has confirmed. The two-day event organised by the Welsh Government’s Food & Drink Wales division brings...

A first-of-its-kind strategy has been launched to set the future of the Welsh wine industry into focus over the next twelve years and increase the sector’s current value by 10-fold to reach £100 million by 2035. Developed at a pivotal time for Welsh vineyards, with the support of the Welsh Government’s Drinks Cluster, the industry-led strategy is designed to ensure Wales builds on its emerging reputation as an experimental producer of varying wines, following some...

Why are we doing this? We want Wales to be free from unnecessary single-use plastics (SUP). By banning or restricting the supply of commonly littered products we will avoid leaving a toxic plastic legacy for future generations to deal with. It will also help us respond to the climate and nature emergencies.

A delegation of Welsh food centres, led by the Welsh Government’s Food and Drink Division, has visited Singapore to attend the Growth Asia Summit 2022 and meet with Singaporean and international food and drink businesses with the aim of promoting Wales as a destination for their investment. Developing opportunities for collaborative innovation and raising the profile of TasteWales/BlasCymru, Wales’s flagship food and drink event, was crucial for the team. Welsh Government Minister for Rural Affairs...

A year on from its inception, members of the Sustainable Scale Up Cluster special interest group, Bridging the Gap, reflect on how forming the group has benefitted its members in a series of videos as part of Black History Month. Formed in 2021, the aim of Bridging the Gap is to tackle obstacles faced by ethnic minority entrepreneurs and community members to starting and growing businesses, as highlighted in research undertaken by the British Business...

As part of the Celtic Connections project, nine of the best food and drink producers attended the 200th Royal Highland Show in June 2022 to fly the Welsh flag for Wales food and drink. Celtic Connections is a project aimed to increase consumer and trade awareness of Welsh food & drink through a shared Celtic Heritage. This project supports the additional growth in the UK market by piloting new routes to market for Welsh food...

Wales’ national vegetable and emblem, the Welsh Leek, is now officially protected as it gains PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) UK GI status. It becomes the third new Welsh product to achieve the highly sought-after UK GI status, following on from Gower Salt Marsh Lamb and Cambrian Mountains Lamb. Welsh Leeks also becomes the 19th member of the Welsh GI family of products, joining the likes of other great produce such as Anglesey Sea Salt, Welsh...

Wines from vineyards across Wales have been recognised by the Welsh Vineyard Association at its 2022 award ceremony. The Welsh Wine Awards saw six wines from four Welsh vineyards take home accolades across the event, which was held at Llanerch Vineyard in the Vale of Glamorgan. A total of 12 vineyards entered this year’s awards, representing a proportion of the growing Welsh wine industry, with around 30 vineyards currently operating across the country. The competing...

The Welsh Government has a long-term Vision for the food and drink industry, as described in the ‘Vision for the Food & Drink Industry from 2021’. The Vision is for a strong, vibrant industry with a global reputation for excellence, which has one of the most environmentally and socially responsible supply chains in the world. The Vision’s mission is to: • Grow business scale, value and productivity. • That business success benefits people and society...

With just days to Wales’ first FIFA World Cup football match for over 60 years, Welsh food and drink producers are celebrating sporting excellence and highlighting awareness of top-quality produce. More than 150 Welsh food and drink producers of all sizes are participating in the #CaruCymruCaruBlas #LoveWalesLoveTaste autumn campaign. They are taking a ‘Team Wales’ approach capturing the sporting spirit of the country as the national football and rugby teams seek international success this month...