Todmorden News

Incredible Edible Harvest Festival Debuts At Todmorden Unitarian Church

There will be something for everyone to enjoy at this years brand new Incredible Edible Harvest Festival on Sunday, September 28th. Organised by local community group Incredible Edible Todmorden, this new harvest festival hopes to complement the traditional festival held annually at Todmorden Town Hall, and will be one of the first events to grace the newly refurbished Unitarian Church in Todmorden.

Incredible Edible Todmorden (IET) is a unique, homespun community venture with an eye on issues affecting everyone. Established in January 2008, IET aims to encourage schools, businesses and ultimately the community as whole, to be active in the production and sourcing of the fruit and vegetables we consume. This exciting project has already attracted a huge amount of national media interest, and the word on the street is that a well-known celebrity chef hopes to produce a feature on what IET are doing

The Incredible Edible Harvest Festival looks to be a fun day for the whole family, with games and music, and freshly cooked food to enjoy alongside the harvest market stalls. All the produce will of course be locally sourced, and will include fresh fish, meats and cheeses, alongside the traditional fruit and vegetables.

Anyone from the local area is welcome to bring some of their own produce along, and organisers suggest bringing it down to the church on or before 2.30pm, in good time for the festival start at 3pm.

Thanks have been given for successful harvests since pagan times, and the celebrations on this day usually include singing hymns, praying, and decorating churches with baskets of fruit and food.

The word harvest is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word hærfest, meaning “Autumn”. It then came to refer to the season for reaping and gathering grain and other grown produce. The full moon nearest the autumnal equinox is called the Harvest Moon, and so in ancient traditions Harvest Festivals were traditionally held on or near the Sunday of the Harvest Moon, which falls in the month of September.

Further information:

Visit the Incredible Edible Todmorden website