More than 120 of Belfast’s restaurateurs, chefs and food specialists, gathered in the city recently to explore the 'future of food and drink’ as part of a major workshop designed to power new opportunities in the city’s culinary industry.
The event was organised by the industry-led Belfast Food & Drink Collective, supported by Belfast City Council and the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera).
Irish chef, restaurateur and TV personality Anna Haugh was joined by food industry stalwart Paul Rankin in a panel designed to inspire the city’s food and drink champions with new ideas and insights.
The panel of experts also included Sunday Times restaurant critic and journalist Patrick Hanlon, sustainable seafood champion Stevie McCarry from Coleraine’s award-winning restaurant and shop Lir, kitchen sustainability advocate and culinary director of FoodSpace Conor Spacey, Flout Pizza owner Peter Thompson and Belfast Stories’ programme director Wendy Langham and Eimear Henry.
The event, the first in a special series to take place this spring, was hosted at leading Belfast cookery school and restaurant Waterman in the city’s Cathedral Quarter.
“Belfast’s food and drink industry enjoys an outstanding reputation for quality, choice and value and we are consistently overwhelmed by the sector’s industry leaders for their passion and enthusiasm to look forward, to innovate and to embrace sustainability practices right across their businesses," said Paul Kane, Belfast Food and Drink Tourism Co-Chair.
The next free event, 'Future-Proofing Your Business: Practical Sustainability for Food & Drink', with sustainability expert Tina O’Dwyer, takes place on Tuesday 25 March 2025 at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park in Belfast.
