ForkFest event planned for Kirkby Lonsdale in September

The historic market town of Kirkby Lonsdale in South Lakeland will be the venue for the first ever Fork Fest (4th - 5th September 2010).

Fork Fest - a celebration of local food, real ale and gardening will be opened on Saturday at 11.30am by Celebrity Chef Simon Rimmer.

The weekend is set to be packed with music, demos, food sampling, an ale trail and plenty of entertainment for the children.

“Fork Fest is a fun filled family weekend,” says Claire Benson, the marketing director for the festival. “We're very excited to be involved in pulling together this inaugural event for Kirkby Lonsdale and delighted that local celebrities want to work with us in our first year, as we believe the event will be beneficial for the businesses in town as well as the community as a whole.

“An underlying theme of Fork Fest is buying local," she adds, "and we want to encourage people to adopt some sustainable practices as well to help look after our environment.”

There will be at least 30 food producers at the Food Fest offering food sampling and the chance to meet the producer, 10 beers on tap at the Beer Fest and, combined with the Real Ale Trail, festival goers will also be able to try local beers on tap around the bars and pubs of Kirkby Lonsdale.

Former Corrie star Sean Wilson will be at ForkFest to talk about his cheese making

In the town's Institute, Demo Fest will be taking place with speakers such as Booths, talking about the Slow Food movement, which works to ensure good, clean and fair food as a right for everyone, formr Coronation Street star Sean Wilson discussing his new venture, the Saddleworth Cheese Company; and Greenlands Farm unearthing the real reason for farm diversification.

With Little Fest, the kids are sure to be kept entertained with food related workshops running all day, face painting and an animal farm.

Within the town Flower Fest will be held at St Mary’s Church, while in the shop windows the Children’s Shoe Flower Boxes are on display, and the event's the competition winner - there's a chance to win a balloon ride on the Fest's web site - will be announced at the Producers Charity Auction.

• Tickets for ForkFest are Adults £5, Children under 16 free, can be ordered prior to Fork Fest, so pick up a brochure and send to the Fork Fest office by the 20th August 2010. To find out more visit the website at www.forkfest.co.uk