Sheffield’s inaugural Tomato Fest took place this September, on one of the most gloriously sunny days we’ve had this year! (Of course, this is not coincidental. We booked the sunshine 😉)
Tomato Fest was just one of the celebratory manifestations of the tomato trials that the Seed Sovereignty Programme have been running this year. A small but dedicated group of growers from across the UK and Ireland have been trialing outdoor, blight-resistant tomatoes bred by the northern region’s very own plant breeder, Simon Crawford, and we wanted to taste-test the resulting fruit whilst bringing together those who have battled possibly the most challenging season ever!
Tomato Fest had two separate but linked elements: a community afternoon of fun, tomato-related activities to raise awareness of what can be grown in the north of England; and an evening of more geeky tomato chat, formal tastings and a shared meal – more for those involved directly in the project.
We chose to hold the events in the wonderful Meersbrook Park Walled Garden, a lovely space beautifully maintained by a group of committed and knowledgeable volunteers, who supported our idea throughout. It’s the space where grower Maddy had grown her trial tomatoes, so we had plants on hand to see too.
Our afternoon included tomato dressing up, a tomato-based arts table, a seed swap and of course the tea and coffee stall, where people were free to mingle and talk all things growing. But the highlight of the event was the tomato competitions – biggest, most beautiful, most unusual and tastiest. We never found chance to count with hundreds of people visiting, but a cautious estimate of over 30 different types of tomato would be fair, and all grown within the immediate area! Tasting the tomatoes was a beautiful celebration of community, with people chopping, chomping and chatting, the careful labels being blurred by juice and the voting tokens, marrowfat peas (the Batchelor’s factory has its roots in the city), rolling off plates as people reached for their new favourites. So many carefully wrapped seeds to take away and store for their next year’s growing too! 
We cleared away for the evening and sat at long tables outside in the dusky evening light for a fabulous feast. Moya, a former seed trainee, chef and proprietor of Barra Organics, which sells organic fruit and veg (and seeds!) in Sheffield, provided our tea – tomato and bean stew with tomato focaccia, and rainbow vegetable pie with roast potatoes and mushroom gravy. Retiring inside, our group of 30 tomato fans were treated to a talk by Simon, detailing some of the background to breeding tomatoes and his journey to produce his new varieties, everyone inspired and enthused. And we finished with a small group taste-testing his varieties outside by phone torchlight!
Not only was this a wonderful and fun event, but it brought together so many enthusiastic growers, some travelling substantial distances to take part. And it ignited conversations around plant breeding, land races, the importance of taste in our vegetables and perhaps most importantly, doing the same thing again next year!
Our event could not have come together without the team work of Food Works Sheffield, the Meersbrook Park Users Trust, Barra Organics, Simon Crawford and a team of brilliant volunteers – thank you all!
