World Food and Music Festival History
The inaugural World Food Festival was a truly unique event held in October 2005 in Downtown Des Moines’ East Village as a partnership with The World Food Prize Foundation. The Festival began as a celebration of Iowa’s rich agricultural heritage, while also sharing the renowned World Food Prize Ceremony with the citizens of Des Moines. The event included a variety of culinary delights and served as a tremendous backdrop for dignitaries visiting the city during the World Food Prize.
In 2006, the Festival expanded to include more food vendors and more global entertainment, and served as a kick-off to a week of World Food Prize events. The 2007 Festival added several new features including cooking demonstrations from participating vendors and taste selections from each cultural café.
Entering its fifth year in 2009, U.S. Cellular® took the reigns as presenting sponsor of Des Moines’ premiere taste event. Restaurants and food vendors who specialize in small operations were the highlight of this great event – mom & pop kitchens churning out their family recipes. The Festival provided the opportunity to taste your way around the world and featured more than 30 cafes, artisans, a variety of entertainers, a marketplace, and international & craft beers and wine to compliment the food.
In 2010, the U.S. Cellular World Food Festival had a record number of 70,000 attendees. We increased the local flavor of our beer and wine, introducing the Tasting Pavilion.
2011 brought another year of great weather and crowds topping 75,000. Attendees enjoyed extended hours at the Meredith Culinary Discovery Pavilion. Alongside these increased offerings, the Buy Fresh, Buy Local Cooking Challenge was introduced and proved to be a great success. Teams raced through the Downtown Farmers’ Market to shop, then made their way to the Festival where they prepared and sampled their meals for a team of judges.
In 2012, the World Food Festival welcomed more than 75,000 guests. Visitors were invited to vote, via smart phone or mobile device, for their favorite Festival vendor during the first annual Foodie’s Choice Contest. The on-site cooking competition concept was redeveloped with a focus on young chefs from local culinary classes, who took part in a live cook-off for a team of celebrity judges in front of an enthusiastic crowd of festival guests. The Meredith Culinary Discovery Pavilion featured demonstrations by 20 local chefs and welcomed hundreds of audience members throughout the event.
In 2013, we will focus on the growth of our world music and entertainment offerings, and have re-branding of the Festival to the World Food & Music Festival as a result of the change. Our goal is to attract and present top-notch world music artists from Iowa and around the globe, and bring attention to our role as one of Iowa’s most diverse cultural celebrations.
Contact Details
Contact Person:Amy Yos
Telephone:
Email:
The inaugural World Food Festival was a truly unique event held in October 2005 in Downtown Des Moines’ East Village as a partnership with The World Food Prize Foundation. The Festival began as a celebration of Iowa’s rich agricultural heritage, while also sharing the renowned World Food Prize Ceremony with the citizens of Des Moines. The event included a variety of culinary delights and served as a tremendous backdrop for dignitaries visiting the city during the World Food Prize.
In 2006, the Festival expanded to include more food vendors and more global entertainment, and served as a kick-off to a week of World Food Prize events. The 2007 Festival added several new features including cooking demonstrations from participating vendors and taste selections from each cultural café.
Entering its fifth year in 2009, U.S. Cellular® took the reigns as presenting sponsor of Des Moines’ premiere taste event. Restaurants and food vendors who specialize in small operations were the highlight of this great event – mom & pop kitchens churning out their family recipes. The Festival provided the opportunity to taste your way around the world and featured more than 30 cafes, artisans, a variety of entertainers, a marketplace, and international & craft beers and wine to compliment the food.
In 2010, the U.S. Cellular World Food Festival had a record number of 70,000 attendees. We increased the local flavor of our beer and wine, introducing the Tasting Pavilion.
2011 brought another year of great weather and crowds topping 75,000. Attendees enjoyed extended hours at the Meredith Culinary Discovery Pavilion. Alongside these increased offerings, the Buy Fresh, Buy Local Cooking Challenge was introduced and proved to be a great success. Teams raced through the Downtown Farmers’ Market to shop, then made their way to the Festival where they prepared and sampled their meals for a team of judges.
In 2012, the World Food Festival welcomed more than 75,000 guests. Visitors were invited to vote, via smart phone or mobile device, for their favorite Festival vendor during the first annual Foodie’s Choice Contest. The on-site cooking competition concept was redeveloped with a focus on young chefs from local culinary classes, who took part in a live cook-off for a team of celebrity judges in front of an enthusiastic crowd of festival guests. The Meredith Culinary Discovery Pavilion featured demonstrations by 20 local chefs and welcomed hundreds of audience members throughout the event.
In 2013, we will focus on the growth of our world music and entertainment offerings, and have re-branding of the Festival to the World Food & Music Festival as a result of the change. Our goal is to attract and present top-notch world music artists from Iowa and around the globe, and bring attention to our role as one of Iowa’s most diverse cultural celebrations.
Contact Details
Contact Person:Amy Yos
Telephone:
Email:
