Hampshire’s Food Heritage

(the real story behind local food production)

Economic Development Office

Hampshire’s Food Heritage is a summary survey of this county’s food history since about 1800. It has been compiled as part of the local food heritage project commissioned by the Economic Development Office of Hampshire County Council in conjunction with Hampshire Fare, and with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Introduction

Hampshire is a county of contrasts, from the southern coasts to the northern heaths, open downland to lush, abundant valleys, from weald to forest. The county has two of the nation’s greatest ports in Southampton and Portsmouth; inland there is the city of Winchester and a wealth of market towns. This variety in its landscape and countryside has formed the foundation for the food heritage of the county.

This paper presents a brief introduction to the development of the food heritage of Hampshire over the course of the past two hundred years, taking the story up to the present day scene of organic farms and farmers’ markets.

Chapters:-

The Wild & the Sown

The Farming Tradition

The Fishing Tradition

The Food Processing Tradition

The Culinary Tradition

Hampshire: Place by Place

Bibliography

Websites

Acknowledgements: Hampshire Archives and Local Studies, Hampshire Record Office; Frances Stokes, Economic Development Office; Tim Brock, Hampshire Fare; Frank Green, Test Valley Borough Council; Ann Sevier, New Forest District Council.