British Regional Foods Worth Planning a Trip Around

There are a number of British foods that are protected by law and can only be called by their true name if they are made in a specific place using specific methods. This means that if you are travelling and food is an important part of your holiday then these foods can be a good reason to visit a town, a beach or a landscape. And even if you are not travelling for the food, the place is worth visiting anyway.

Why protected names matter

In the UK, many foods are protected by geographical indication schemes and can be registered as a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI). The way in which each is protected can vary from food to food but essentially the name of the food is associated with a region and method of production. This is why, for example, a genuine Cornish pasty must be made in Cornwall, and why the label means something to the consumer. To understand the true nature of a food, the simplest way is to eat it where it’s been produced.

Four foods worth the journey

Cornish pasty, Cornwall. The protected version has a distinctive D shape, is crimped along one side and is filled with beef, potato, swede and onion. Eat one on a harbour wall in a fishing town and it makes complete sense as a working lunch that could be carried down a mine or out on a boat.

Melton Mowbray pork pie, Leicestershire. The protected pie uses uncured pork, which is why the filling is grey rather than pink, and it is baked free-standing rather than in a tin. Melton Mowbray itself is a market town with a long food history, and it makes a good stop between the Midlands and the east coast.

Arbroath smokie, Angus. Haddock, salted and smoked over hardwood, traditionally made within a few miles of Arbroath on the Scottish east coast. Buying one warm from a smokehouse near the harbour is a very different experience from finding it vacuum-packed elsewhere.

Stilton, the East Midlands. Oddly, genuine Stilton can’t be made in the village of Stilton in Cambridgeshire. The protected cheese can only come from Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire, so a cheese-minded trip means heading to the dairy country of the Vale of Belvoir and the Peak District fringes.

Making a trip of it

If you build your day around farmers’ markets, farm shops, working bakeries and other producers rather than just looking for restaurants to eat in, you can taste produce at its freshest and talk to the people who make it. Small producers can keep short hours and often shut on Mondays. Check opening days before you go.

Planning a food trip: quick checklist

• Pick one protected food and look up the area it must come from.
• Check market days and producer opening hours before booking.
• Take a cool bag for anything you want to bring home.
• Leave room for a second, unplanned find. There usually is one.