Chefs & farmers join forces to promote local foods in top restaurants - Pacific Agribusiness weeek 2015

Forty chefs and farmers from countries across the Pacific met at the Pacific Community Agritourism Week in Fiji, with many discussing business transactions on-site to supply local produce to restaurants and resorts. The Buyers-Sellers Mart is part of the Agritourism Week, which aims to bring together farmers and tourism operators with a view to promoting local produce and to tempt tourists with more contemporary Pacific cuisine on local menus. The week is a collaboration between the European Union, Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) and the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management at the University of the South Pacific (USP). Other event partners include the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) and the Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation (PIPSO).

The Buyers-Sellers Mart brought together 20 farmers and 20 chefs in a format similar to ‘speed dating’, where they had short 10-minute sessions with each other to quickly meet, exchange ideas and discuss any direct-supply opportunities Being a first for the region, the Buyers-Sellers Mart also attracted attention from international dignitaries, impressed with the Mart’s practical and effective approach. This included H.E. Roy Mickey Joy, Chairman of the ACP Committee of Ambassadors and Ambassador of Vanuatu to the European Union, who encouraged the Pacific region to keep exploring practical ways of linking farmers to such important markets. The same sentiment was echoed by Fiji’s Minister for Agriculture, Mr Inia Seruiratu, who joined the Mart “to encourage the farmers further develop agritourism", and then took the time to meet with each chef and farmer and listen to their issues and ideas.

See more via the SPC website: http://www.spc.int/pafpnet/newsroom/news-press-releases/259-chefs-and-farmers-join-forces-to-promote-local-foods-in-top-restaurants