National Parks Week - your countryside on a plate

Monday 28 July – Sunday 3 August

National Media release
Issued: 15 July 2008

Who likes burgers, kebabs, shepherds pie and Sunday roast?” we ask.
“We do!” cry the children.
“Where do they come from?” we ask.
“The shops!” the youngsters reply.

Children learning about local produce in a National Park

National Park Authorities across the country are using National Parks Week (NPW) 2008 to promote locally sourced food and farming. For people who live in a National Park or are just visiting, supporting, buying and eating local produce makes an important contribution to the local economy of the communities that live there. There is a range of activities going on in National Parks around the country with plenty of reasons to get out for some fresh air and enjoy the views.

National Parks Week is dedicated to raising awareness that these beautiful areas exist. In the run-up to National Parks Week there are picnics in the North York Moors, Brecon Beacons, Pembrokeshire Coast and The Broads. Other National Park Week events include everything from food-themed walks to farm visits, chocolate making and a farm photography competition. Events are being held in National Parks all over the country and there is something for everyone to enjoy.

National Parks Week is an opportunity to also enjoy a rich culinary experience as innovative and at times award winning UK National Park chefs cook up a delicious range of foods with locally sourced produce. Recipes from all over the country, including a chef’s suggestion of a soup made with 15 year old Malt whiskey, will also be on the National Parks website so people will be able to get a taste of National Parks wherever they live.

Farms in the UK National Parks are the source of a wonderful variety of produce, some of it served in interesting places. The Ptarmigan Restaurant in the Cairngorms National Park, situated at 3,600 feet, is the highest restaurant in the UK serving traditional Highland produce. The Black Mountain Breakfast in the Brecon Beacons National Park provides an exciting taste of Welsh foods or for the chocoholics there is a “Chocolate Experience” in the Peak District.

For more information about what’s on where and a number of National Park chefs and their recipes visit the links below

- ENDS -

Notes:

• There are 14 National Parks in the UK, covering 7% of England, 20% of Wales and 7.3% of Scotland.  
• National Parks have the highest landscape protection for their outstanding beauty and special qualities.  They are an important part of the nation’s cultural heritage.
• National Parks are there for everyone to enjoy, free of charge, 24/7, 365 days of the year.  
• National Parks Week aims to raise the profile of National Parks and to encourage more people to enjoy them – particularly children and families.
• More than 125 million visitor days are spent in National Parks per year.  These special areas are an important part of the nation’s heritage and are here for everyone to enjoy.
• The UK National Parks are the Brecon Beacons, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Lake District, New Forest, Northumberland, North York Moors, Peak District, Pembrokeshire Coast, Snowdonia, Yorkshire Dales, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs and the Cairngorms. The Broads is a member of the National Parks ‘family’ although not strictly an official National Park.  The South Downs is in the process of designation as a National Park.

Media contacts for more information

Hi-res editorial images