TOM AIKENS TO HEADLINE CHEFS STAGE AT UCFF

16 September 2025 | Tewinbury Farm, Hertfordshire

Tickets: £125 + VAT | www.cookeryandfoodfestival.co.uk

The universal cookery & food festival (ucff) makes its highly anticipated return on Tuesday 16 September 2025, hosted at the culinary hub Tewinbury Farm in Hertfordshire — a venue renowned for its sustainability focus and five-strong dining portfolio.

Created by chefs, for chefs, ucff has been dubbed "Glastonbury for chefs", offering an inspiring day out of the kitchen, packed with live demos, hot-topic debates, wild food exploration, and peer-to-peer connection.

This year, Michelin-starred titan Tom Aikens headlines the Staff Canteen Live, joined by a Michelin-starred line-up of top culinary talent, for what promises to be one of the festival’s most electrifying editions yet.

What’s On at ucff 2025:

• The Staff Canteen Live — Hosted by Mark Morris – Watch four Michelin chefs light up the stage in a series of live cookery demos Tom Aikens (Muse), Daniel Clifford & Liam Anderson (Midsummer House), Tom de Keyser & Sarah Hayward (The Hand & Flowers / The Coach) and Josh Angus (HIDE, Mayfair)

• Wild Food - Feather, Fur, Fin & Fungi Demo Stage - An expanded wild food concept featuring game butchery, fish prep, wild foraging and fungi, with hands-on insight from seasoned field-to-fork experts.

• Foraging Walks - Led by Colin Wheeler-James and the Ground Up Cookery School, these walks dive deep into nature’s pantry, alongside the River Mimram, with a focus on sustainable sourcing and menu integration.

• Trends & Debates Stage — Hosted by Nigel Barden – Tackle the big topics shaping the future of foodservice, with sessions including:

  • Local Heroes – celebrating regional food champions

  • Eat Yourself Well – wellness, nutrition, and food as medicine

  • To B or Not to B-Corp? – unpacking the value of ethical business models

  • AI in the Kitchen – what’s real, what’s hype?

• Farmers’ MarketA vibrant, multi-sensory showcase of the best in British produce and equipment, from hyperlocal to national suppliers.

"ucff is more than a festival — it’s a reset for our industry. It brings chefs, growers, makers, and thinkers together in nature to share, learn, and grow," said Billie Moore, Joint Managing Director of 365 Events and Founding Partner of the universal cookery and food festival.

Venue Spotlight: Tewinbury Farm

A working farm with deep food roots, this progressive hospitality site boasts:

• Five food and drink concepts

• On-site cookery school

• An ethos rooted in sustainability, seasonality, and locality