On Sunday 1^st May, crowds of people flocked to Salcombe to enjoy the delights of the much anticipated ‘Crabfest’, and they were certainly not disappointed!

Despite a three year absence from the town’s event calendar, the one-day food festival was exceptionally well attended, with thousands of people coming along to support the local tourism and fishing industries, and to experience the event first hand.

Organised by The Rotary Club of Salcombe, this free-to-attend festival aims to showcase Salcombe and its prestigious commodity, brown crab. Every year the event raises money for good causes – and this year an incredible £10,000 was raised for Cancer Research UK!

John Sampson said, “We are delighted that so many locals and visitors joined us for Salcombe Crabfest 2022, and that we have raised such an impressive amount for Cancer Research UK. In a year where cancer has touched so many of our lives at The Rotary Club of Salcombe, this charity is all the more important to us and we are so proud to be able to support it.”

The 2022 event was the fifth ‘Crabfest’ – the amount raised for local and national charities over the course of the five years now totals over £60,000!

This year, visitors were treated to entertaining chef demonstrations from no less than seven highly skilled professionals, who created dishes ranging from prawn churros to crab salad in front of onlookers. With BBC Radio Devon’s hilarious David FitzGerald keeping a watchful eye over proceedings and acting as compère, there was no shortage of entertainment in the Chefs’ Demo Marquee!

Elsewhere, the exhibitors in the street market, which encompassed the Creek Car Park, Island Street and Whitestrand, reported an exceptional day with a constant flow of shoppers. The occasional shower of rain didn’t dampen spirits either, with musicians including Benny Guitar Carr and sea shanty crew The Old Gaffers adding to the atmosphere. Plus, the hearty choice of food and drink producers in attendance, offering street food to suit all palates, meant no visitor went hungry… from crab pasties to popcorn shrimp, the offerings were delicious!

John finishes “We hope everyone had a superb time and enjoyed the variety of entertainment, food and drink on offer. Thank you so much to everyone who helped put on this event. Without our dedicated team of volunteers, our sponsors including Salcombe Gin, Coast & Country Cottages and Marchand Petit, and the support of many other local people and businesses, the event wouldn’t happen. We look forward to seeing everyone on 1st May 2023!”