Hull food festival draws record crowds

The Yum! Food Festival which took place in Hull recently attracted more than 100,000 people – making it the biggest event of its kind in the region.

This year’s crowd numbers represented a significant increase on 2012, when 63,500 people attended.

The festival was extended to run for three days and was also open during the evenings, so more visitors were encouraged to get involved. The word from traders and stall holders is that the extension led to record takings. Matt Cunnah, the owner of PIE, said that his profits increased by around 75 per cent when compared with last year’s event.

Mr Cunnah said he thought that the festival seemed at least two times busier than last year, as he sold around 300 more pies. He even had people coming up to the store asking to try them when they had already sold out. PIE sells all kinds of pastry products, including a pie filled with BBQ meat, and even a vegetarian option. The fact that the festival was such a success suggests there is a definite market for his food and other similar events in the area.

The festival attracted people from all over, from hand reared beef farmers to black pudding suppliers. The benefits of the event were reaped even by Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce’s external affairs manager, and all those involved are already looking forward to next year’s event, more information on which can be obtained from the local council or found online.