Food festivals

One of the best things about living near farming areas is the abundance of festivals that revolve around a certain crop or food. My friend has made it his mission to seek out as many of these events as possible, and he has identified over a dozen festivals within a few hours’ drive of the Twin Cities. There an Apple Fest, Rhubarb Fest, Raspberry Fest, even a Rutabaga Fest. Events like these celebrate not only a particular food but also the community as a whole, with parades, dances, craft fairs, and other activities.

My hometown in North Dakota has celebrated Sauerkraut Day for 100 years, with a free dinner that attracts thousands of visitors, more than tripling the town’s population. Celebrations such as this provide a time for people who have moved away to return to visit family and friends, and to reinvigorate community pride and fellowship for those who still live there. The food being celebrated in these festivals is not some fancy creation crafted for Instagram, it is usually a cash crop produced in the area or has significance for the people in the community.

Sometimes the festivals outlive the farming as a particular crop diminishes in importance, but in many places it is still a major part of the economy, as is the case with Cranberry Fest in Warrens, Wisconsin. Two-thirds of the US cranberry crop comes from Wisconsin, and cranberries are the state’s largest fruit crop in both size and economic value, providing plenty of reason to celebrate.

Nostalgia features prominently at local food festivals, which often feature old-fashioned machinery on display so people can marvel at the antique technologies used in the past to harvest the crops. If you have ever seen a vintage threshing machine being used, you understand why OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) was created. Parades, music, petting zoos, and hayrides contribute to the nostalgic feel.

Even with all of the other festivities, the food is the focus and you can usually find it used in many ways. With festivals revolving around fruits like apples and cranberries there will be beverages, pies, cakes, salads, and more featuring the celebrated fruit. I am not certain that is the case with Rutabaga Fest, but at the Gilroy (CA) garlic festival they make garlic ice cream, so I guess anything is possible. In my hometown, they keep it simple by having one massive meal of sauerkraut, wieners, speck, and mashed potatoes. The vat in which volunteers cook the sauerkraut is large enough to use as a hot tub, so the aroma is pervasive. But I love it because it feels like home. What’s your favorite food fest?