Cywain makes 2020 – the Christmas of Welsh Food & Drink Discovery!

We’ve all been doing things a bit differently this year. It’s been a year of change – but one of discovery too!

Christmas is the perfect time to take a ‘virtual discovery tour’ of Welsh food and drink, and celebrate and support local producers who work day and night to give us outstanding, flavour-filled produce.

As part of its strategy to put producers in the spotlight, Cywain is calling on shoppers to show their support and to ‘Keep it local, keep it Welsh!’ this Christmas.

Whether it is Christmas dinner and all the trimmings, a seasonal tipple, or a sweet ‘hello’ for someone you haven’t seen in a while, the Cywain Producers’ Map (cywain.cymru)makes locating local products easy.

The map features over 250 fantastic Welsh food and drink producers engaged with the Cywain project – and pinpoints everything from drinks to dairy, preserves to pastries, seafood to spreads and home cooking kits to honey.

Since its initial launch in May, the rapidly expanding Cywain map has been instrumental in connecting shoppers with fabulous food and drink from producers the length and breadth of Wales.

Easy to navigate, the map is a guide to traditional treats and new indulgences, from ingredients to gift ideas – all of which can be delivered to the doorstep.

Cywain Project Manager, Dewi Evans, said, “Supporting food and drink producers in Wales has never been more critical than it is now. It’s been an incredibly tough year with new challenges seemingly at every turn. Still, in the face of such turmoil, food and drink producers have continued to do what they do best – with determination and passion.

“Cywain is proud to have been able to offer producers a seamless range of support to help them adapt to different ways of working and develop new markets and customers during the pandemic.”

To help bring the message home to festive shoppers, Cywain has created a digital campaign featuring the ‘local food and drink heroes’ behind the products (cywain.cymru).

Voiced by Welsh actor Mark Lewis Jones, the digital campaign is a snap-shot from across the food and drink sector, from field to plate. It honours producers and encourages the public to ‘Keep it local, keep it Welsh!’ this Christmas.

Dewi Evans said, “The resilience, adaptability and creativity of Welsh food and drink producers is to be admired, and Cywain believes in telling the stories behind these local products, and sharing the passion and skill that goes into making the fantastic food and drink we enjoy all year round – but especially at Christmas.”