It is said that challenges are what makes life interesting, but overcoming them is what makes life meaningful. Faced with mounting uncertainty in May 2020 and the inability to definitively plan this year’s Jamaica Food & Drink Festival (JFDF), the team decided to focus instead on alleviating the escalating social need through its newly established Jamaica Food & Drink (JFD) Cares arm.

JFD Cares was launched in July 2020 with an initiative that saw the JFDF team partnering with its sponsors and chefs to fete the staff and wards at the Maxfield Park Children’s Home, SOS Children’s Village in Stony Hill, Yadel Home for Girls in Old Harbour, and the Denham Town Golden Age Home. This was the first in a series of planned efforts to fulfil the mandate of the newly formed JFD Cares to leverage its internal resources and machinery, along with its vibrant community of chefs and partners, to make a difference to those in need, using food as a platform.

According to Matthew Lyn, festival chairman, “In addition to creating amazing culinary events annually at our much-anticipated festival, we are committed to curating memorable food experiences for all to enjoy, including the disadvantaged. We see it all as part of our mission to develop our local food and beverage industry through education and innovative experiences that celebrate and share Jamaica with the world.”

Companies that participated in this inaugural JFD Cares initiative were CB Group through CB Foods and Copperwood, Rainforest Seafoods, Sagicor Foundation, Grace Foods, Seprod Group, Wisynco Group, JP St Mary’s, National Baking Company and Mystique Integrated.

The team of chefs who worked to make the treat a delectable affair comprised Oji Jaja, Jacqui Tyson, Theo Smith, Trevanne Donnegal, Rebecca Karram, Dawn Williams, Patsy Lyn Caterers, Chris Nakash, Dale Delisser, Haleem Card, and Shea Stewart. The Food and Drink team is proud to have over 70 of the top chefs in Jamaica in its festival portfolio including private, restaurant and hotel chefs.

This year’s JFDF is slated for November, a month later than its usual end of October date, and the team promises to live up to its reputation of creating memorable food experiences. JFDF is asking patrons to check the website at jafoodanddrink.com and its social media platforms @jafoodanddrink for further updates. The team also reiterated its commitment to ensuring the safety of everyone involved and acting in the interest of the long-term benefit of Jamaica.