The sun wasn’t the only thing shining at Bundy Flavours 2019, young and old were smiling from ear-to-ear as they were immersed in delicious fresh fruit and vegetables grown in the Bundaberg Region.
Bundaberg Mayor Jack Dempsey opened the event with celebrity chefs Alastair McLeod and Janelle Bloom and said the masses of crowds were testament to the passion held for the region’s beautiful produce.
Mayor Dempsey said you can’t have Bundy Flavours without fun.
“A big thank you to all the stalls, 60 stalls here today and a lot of fantastic people here adding to the festival, it’s certainly a great place to be in Australia,” Mayor Dempsey said.
“We know that 24 per cent of everyone employed in agriculture in Queensland is in this region.
“We have so much going for us here in the Bundaberg Region and we are able to grow fruit and vegetables all year round, and what puts all of those ingredients together are the chefs, farmers and producers and we need to be proud of that.”
Celebrity chef says Bundaberg is in his blood
Alastair has joined the community at Bundy Flavours for years and said it was a pleasure yet again to return to cook in front of the crowd on the Barbecues Galore Grill Station.
“This place is very much in my blood,” Alastair said.
“The whole sense I have had in the last couple of days as a cook, we went to Water Street bistro last night and that precociously talented chef Alex Cameron and his wife Jen, you know Janelle and I aren’t handing the baton over anytime soon, but the future of cooking is in safe hands when you see such confident cooking and real expression on the menu of where we are in the world.”
Mayor Dempsey agreed the region had all of the ingredients readily available to make sure a food festival like Bundy Flavours went off without a hitch but he said that wasn’t what made it successful.
“We have all the natural food ingredients, but our greatest ingredient of all is our people,” Mayor Dempsey said.
“It’s the people who bring all the ingredients together along with the people in our community that make festivals like Bundy Flavours possible.
“With the possible threat of weather about it’s just great to see all families out and about enjoying themselves.”
Heritage Bank Bundaberg Branch Manager Leanne Hermann said they were proud sponsors of the Bundy Flavours since it started and it had grown year-on-year.
“Everyone is here supporting this event – people from everywhere have come to enjoy it and we are just so lucky to have produce like this available on our doorstep,” Leanne said.
“The festival is engaging people more and more … everyone is really interested in food and coffee.
“It’s always just a great day and it’s lovely to see the big turn-out this morning.”
Stallholders bring fresh food to Bundy Flavours 2019
Local producers Buxton Barley Fresh Beef and Cor-lyn Enterprises were just two of the 60 stalls set up for Bundy Flavours 2019.
Both said they were rushed off their feet with the crowds coming through the festival gates.
Buxton Barley Fresh Beef owner Danny Sondergeld said he’d been along to Bundy Flavours for the last three years and it was always a great day to get out in the community.
“We have beef, lamb, pork and bacon and our aim is to give the customer the real product – the grass fed product,” Danny said.
“Or the sprout fed product with no hormones or antibiotics and has been fed on the best possible feed we can find.”
Danny said it was important to give consumers something that was not only different but a healthy alternative to meat from the supermarket.
He said farming was a family affair and both his wife, Sharon and son Ethan were involved in the business.
“We are a mobile seller and are available at the Pocket Storehouse of a Saturday morning,” he said.
“We have naturally fermented salami which is always popular as the recipe is over 1000 years old.”
Cor and Lyn Van Vliet from Cor-Lyn Enterprises were also rushed off their feet with locals checking out the variety of herbs and plants including wild strawberries and grafted fruit trees.
The South Kolan couple have been growing plants, including native trees, for almost a decade and said Bundy Flavours was a chance to speak to locals and share their green thumb knowledge.
Celebrating his 88th birthday on Friday Cor said there was no chance of stopping him anytime soon.
“We love what we do and we are happy to be here at Bundy Flavours,” Cor said.
Mayor Dempsey said Bundy Flavours didn’t end today, it continued 365 days a years and it was up to the community to spread the word of our beautiful produce to the rest of the world.
“We have the best ingredients and of the highest quality meals that turn out in our restaurants,” he said.
