'Food Festival' in Jersey Acts as "Madeira Tourism Poster in England"

Around 25,000 people are expected at the Portuguese Food Festival, the largest event organized by the Madeiran community in Jersey, Rui Abreu, Regional Director for Communities and External Cooperation, said this Sunday, August 28.

During the four-day festival, including tomorrow, 25,000 people will have darshan.
Regional Director for Communities and External Cooperation

The XXI edition of the Portuguese Food Festival starts on Friday and runs until tomorrow. The event has not been held since 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Rui Abreu appreciated the support of the event’s organizing committee and the official institutions of Jersey, represented by Councilor Joao Carlos Nunes and Mayor of the Municipality of St. Helier, Simon Crowcroft.

“This is the biggest event in Jersey and is organized by the Madeiran community,” Rui Abreu said, noting that “in addition to keeping Madeiran traditions alive in Jersey, the festival also serves as a tourism poster for Madeira in the United Kingdom.”

João Carlos Nunes, councilor of Madeira in Jersey and head of the festival’s organizing committee, attests and admits that a great deal of effort has made it possible to re-promote the festival.

In this festival we show our culture, our customs, values and traditions. At the same time, we send a picture of Madeira to everyone who visits the event. Basically, the festival acts as a tourism promotion platform for our land.
Madeira Counsel in Jersey

Joao Carlos Nunes also described the difficulties experienced in the last two years: “The business landscape is different in Jersey today. So, organizing the festival was a challenge. Thanks to the support of sponsors, local and regional organizations, we were able to take the festival forward, set up five gastronomic tents, bring in 12 entertainment groups, and give new life to the Madeira Folklore Group in Jersey. .

“We are the largest foreign community living in Jersey. Let this festival continue. We will also maintain the Madeira-Jersey twin: it is a bridge, it will continue”, concluded Joao Carlos Nunes.

GR Madera maintains support for folk group

The regional government, through the Regional Directorate for Communities and External Cooperation, will continue to support the Madeira Folk Group in Jersey.

The guarantee was given by Rui Abreu, who spoke about the group’s importance in spreading Madeira’s culture abroad.

“We will continue to support folk clothes, boots and fabrics”, he said, noting that “the Madeira Folk Group in Jersey has a fundamental role in promoting and disseminating Maderan traditions in the Channel Islands”.