Moray Foraging Fortnight to grow for 2020
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FORAGING Fortnight will return to Moray in 2020 after a fruitful first year.
Following the success of this year’s festival, organisers are planning an expanded programme for next year.
The LEADER-funded festival aims to encourage people of all ages to become more aware of the benefits of wild plants around us. The programme includes guided foraging outings, talks, workshops and cookery demonstrations across five regions in Scotland: Moray, Lanarkshire, Forth Valley and Lomond, Fife, and Orkney.
The first Foraging Fortnight ran from August 31 to September 15 with 24 events in Moray and 297 people taking part. Activities ranged from a Forres Feast Pop-Up Shop, a celebration of foraged food at The Royal Oak in Cullen, guided foraging walks through Sanquhar Woods with local charity Wild Things!, and coastal foraging walks from Cullen Harbour.
Events catered for all ages and levels of mobility, including a Family Foraging Walk at Wester Lawrenceton Farm, near Forres, and Wheels in the Wild for Wheelchair Users along the Moray Coastal Trail. There was an emphasis on foraging for wellness including Walking for Wellness events at Quarrelwood at Elgin.
Local ethnobotanist Jennie Martin will run sessions once again, combining her expertise in woodland and coastal plants, bush-craft and environmental education with a focus on wellbeing and reconnecting with nature. Also returning will be Dan Puplett, one of the UK’s leading naturalist skills instructors who runs wild food workshops with an emphasis on safe, sustainable foraging.
Chris Muir, Moray LEADER development officer, said: "Getting outdoors to reconnect with nature and the seasons is proven to improve both mental wellbeing and physical health – and foraging is a fun and accessible way of doing that. I’m delighted with the success of our first Foraging Fortnight.
"The programme in Moray really showed the widespread benefits of foraging and, of course, was a way of showcasing the diverse and beautiful landscape of our region. I look forward to revealing the line-up for 2020’s Foraging Fortnight in the spring and am sure it will capture the imagination of people across Moray and beyond."
The new programme will be released in March. Those looking to run an event as part of Foraging Fortnight 2020 should contact event manager Wendy Barrie on wendy@wendybarrie.co.uk.
