FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4038463

LEAD IN:

UK wine industry experts are eyeing the upcoming vote on whether to leave the European Union with mixed feelings.

With producers and suppliers heavily reliant on pan-European trade, many remain unsure how Brexit will impact upon business.

STORY-LINE:

Sparkling wine on a summer's day in the English capital.

Glistening flutes and bottles in abundance, and a crowd of happy lunchtime drinkers add to the atmosphere of excitement and discovery, along with an impromptu game of ping pong.

It must be London Wine Week.

This is the third year of the festival, and this year is the most popular to date.

Festival director Emma Murphy says "It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved" .

But although these flutes of fizz are English sparkling wine, much of the wine the festival goers here are tasting is from EU member states such as France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Germany.

The June 23 referendum on whether to quit the European Union is fast approaching. So is this something the industry should fear?

"I wouldn't have said so," says Murphy.

"Wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

At the festival hub on London's Devonshire Square, there are pop-up bars featuring wines from across Europe.

These two young graduate trainees are enjoying wines from Portugal, and with their festival wristband, it costs them just five British Pounds for a flight of three.

Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers both agree that things may well be different if Britain leaves the union.

"If it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be," says Anna, while Oscar is concerned about regulation and labelling:

"It would also be more difficult to know what you are drinking because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

The New Street wine shop has been taken over by the wine festival. They sell wines from all over the world but today they are holding a tasting featuring wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain.

Most wine drinkers know about the region of Rioja, but Bettina Lemm is informing these festival goers about the region she represents.

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero but I think that we're still establishing ourselves."

But if the UK is an important export market, is Brexit going to throw the proverbial spanner into the works? Lemm doesn't seem too worried "I think at the moment we're pretty confident as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment," she says.

Wine used to have a rather old fashioned reputation and a comparatively elderly demographic, but this has changed enormously in recent years.

The prevalence of wine clubs popping up in the UK is an indicator of wine's increasing popularity.

Tom Harrow of Honest Grapes explains why this is "I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people," he says.

With 125 venues across the metropolis taking part in this festival, there's plenty of opportunity to enjoy it with friends.

But with such enthusiasm for wine spreading across the country, June 23 could bring disruption, according to Harrow "It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up" .

However, the future might be bright in other, unexpected ways.

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least," says Harrow, and with apologies to climate change icon Al Gore, he adds that "global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

Reports by the WSTA (Wine and Spirit Trade Association) suggest there is still some way to go as the UK comes in at number six on the list of sales of sparkling wine by origin - but it's rising year on year.

600 million bottles of wine are bottled in the UK.

This makes the UK wine market the sixth largest in the world, generating 173 billion British pounds of economic activity, according to the WSTA. 10 billion British pounds are made through sales.

Also being showcased here is one of the new kids on the alcohol block, Regal Rogue Vermouth.

According to brand founder Mark Ward, vermouth, by definition, is 75 percent wine. It must have wormwood and it must have an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 15 to 24 percent. These three things have to be in place for a producer to put vermouth on the bottle or it flouts recent EU regulations.

Ward, who was brought up in hospitality, began the project in Australia where he worked closely with top Australian chefs who introduced him to indigenous herbs and spices.

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort." he says.

Ward is attempting to educate the wine drinking market which, he believes, is mostly unaware of the fact that vermouth is fundamentally a wine.

This can only be helped by a new pop up for 2016, the Vermouth Bar.

The parent company of London Wine Week is the aptly named "Drink Up London", and they're already preparing for the 2017 event - Brexit or no Brexit.

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4038463

LEAD IN:

UK wine industry experts are eyeing the upcoming vote on whether to leave the European Union with mixed feelings.

With producers and suppliers heavily reliant on pan-European trade, many remain unsure how Brexit will impact upon business.

STORY-LINE:

Sparkling wine on a summer's day in the English capital.

Glistening flutes and bottles in abundance, and a crowd of happy lunchtime drinkers add to the atmosphere of excitement and discovery, along with an impromptu game of ping pong.

It must be London Wine Week.

This is the third year of the festival, and this year is the most popular to date.

Festival director Emma Murphy says "It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved" .

But although these flutes of fizz are English sparkling wine, much of the wine the festival goers here are tasting is from EU member states such as France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Germany.

The June 23 referendum on whether to quit the European Union is fast approaching. So is this something the industry should fear?

"I wouldn't have said so," says Murphy.

"Wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

At the festival hub on London's Devonshire Square, there are pop-up bars featuring wines from across Europe.

These two young graduate trainees are enjoying wines from Portugal, and with their festival wristband, it costs them just five British Pounds for a flight of three.

Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers both agree that things may well be different if Britain leaves the union.

"If it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be," says Anna, while Oscar is concerned about regulation and labelling:

"It would also be more difficult to know what you are drinking because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

The New Street wine shop has been taken over by the wine festival. They sell wines from all over the world but today they are holding a tasting featuring wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain.

Most wine drinkers know about the region of Rioja, but Bettina Lemm is informing these festival goers about the region she represents.

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero but I think that we're still establishing ourselves."

But if the UK is an important export market, is Brexit going to throw the proverbial spanner into the works? Lemm doesn't seem too worried "I think at the moment we're pretty confident as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment," she says.

Wine used to have a rather old fashioned reputation and a comparatively elderly demographic, but this has changed enormously in recent years.

The prevalence of wine clubs popping up in the UK is an indicator of wine's increasing popularity.

Tom Harrow of Honest Grapes explains why this is "I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people," he says.

With 125 venues across the metropolis taking part in this festival, there's plenty of opportunity to enjoy it with friends.

But with such enthusiasm for wine spreading across the country, June 23 could bring disruption, according to Harrow "It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up" .

However, the future might be bright in other, unexpected ways.

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least," says Harrow, and with apologies to climate change icon Al Gore, he adds that "global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

Reports by the WSTA (Wine and Spirit Trade Association) suggest there is still some way to go as the UK comes in at number six on the list of sales of sparkling wine by origin - but it's rising year on year.

600 million bottles of wine are bottled in the UK.

This makes the UK wine market the sixth largest in the world, generating 173 billion British pounds of economic activity, according to the WSTA. 10 billion British pounds are made through sales.

Also being showcased here is one of the new kids on the alcohol block, Regal Rogue Vermouth.

According to brand founder Mark Ward, vermouth, by definition, is 75 percent wine. It must have wormwood and it must have an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 15 to 24 percent. These three things have to be in place for a producer to put vermouth on the bottle or it flouts recent EU regulations.

Ward, who was brought up in hospitality, began the project in Australia where he worked closely with top Australian chefs who introduced him to indigenous herbs and spices.

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort." he says.

Ward is attempting to educate the wine drinking market which, he believes, is mostly unaware of the fact that vermouth is fundamentally a wine.

This can only be helped by a new pop up for 2016, the Vermouth Bar.

The parent company of London Wine Week is the aptly named "Drink Up London", and they're already preparing for the 2017 event - Brexit or no Brexit.

AP Television

London - 27 May 2016

1. Close of wine glasses

2. Bartender pouring sparkling wine

3. Tilt down on central courtyard at Devonshire Square, the hub for London Wine Week

4. Group of friends enjoying English sparkling wine

5. Men playing table tennis

6. Sign reading (English) "London Wine Week"

7. Set up shot of Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

"What's unique about it? It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved whether that's with offers, special menus or ticketed events across the week."

9. Two women with wine flight selection

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

(Responding to the question Do you think a Brexit will affect the wine industry negatively?)

"I wouldn't have said so, because I mean, I think, you know, wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

11. Sign reading (English) "Pop into our pop up wine bars"

12. Various of Portuguese wine pop up

13. Mid of graduate trainees in insurance Oscar Stenpom and Anna Rogers

14. Flight of Portuguese wines

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers, Insurance Graduate Trainees:

(Responding to question Do you think a Brexit will mean it will be more difficult for people to access quality wine?)

Stenbom: "Yes,"

Rogers: "I guess so, I mean if it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be."

Stenbom: "It would also be more difficult to know what you're drinking, because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

16. Pull focus of Spanish wine labels

17. Vintage bottles of fortified wine

18. Side view of Spanish wine bottles

19. Set up shot of Bettina Lemm with wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Bettina Lemm, Westbury Communications (which represents the Ribera del Duero region in the UK):

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero, but I think that we're still establishing ourselves. A lot of people know some big names from the region, and we're just trying to bring attention to some other grape producers who might not yet have the same recognition."

21. Close of wine labels

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Bettina Lemm, Westbury Communications (who represent the Ribera del Duero region in the UK):

(Responding to the question are you worried about the possibility of a Brexit affecting your export market?)

"I think at the moment we're pretty confident, as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment."

23. Pan from mediaeval knight sculpture to pop up courtyard

24. Mid of Provence wines pop up

25. Establisher shot of Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes Wine Club

26. Close of Harrow eyeing the wine

27. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"There's been a real rise in wine clubs in London and the UK generally of late, and I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people."

28. Mid of woman laughing over a glass of wine

29. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and then bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up."

30. Woman at table with wine

31. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least - and even the whites, and to an extent the reds are really coming up. So I have to say it - sorry Al Gore - global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

32. Various of English rose and white sparkling wines

33. Vermouth being poured into a glass

34. Various of "Regal Rogue" Vermouth bottle

35. Tilt up of Mark Ward, founder of Regal Rogue vermouth, and his produce

36. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark Ward, founder of Regal Rogue vermouth:

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort."

37. Crowd of London Wine Week attendees at the Vermouth Bar

38. Mid of vermouth cocktails being made

39. Focus pull of sign reading (English) "Drink Up"

LENGTH: 6:02

LEAD IN:

UK wine industry experts are eyeing the upcoming vote on whether to leave the European Union with mixed feelings.

With producers and suppliers heavily reliant on pan-European trade, many remain unsure how Brexit will impact upon business.

STORY-LINE:

Sparkling wine on a summer's day in the English capital.

Glistening flutes and bottles in abundance, and a crowd of happy lunchtime drinkers add to the atmosphere of excitement and discovery, along with an impromptu game of ping pong.

It must be London Wine Week.

This is the third year of the festival, and this year is the most popular to date.

Festival director Emma Murphy says "It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved" .

But although these flutes of fizz are English sparkling wine, much of the wine the festival goers here are tasting is from EU member states such as France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Germany.

The June 23 referendum on whether to quit the European Union is fast approaching. So is this something the industry should fear?

"I wouldn't have said so," says Murphy.

"Wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

At the festival hub on London's Devonshire Square, there are pop-up bars featuring wines from across Europe.

These two young graduate trainees are enjoying wines from Portugal, and with their festival wristband, it costs them just five British Pounds for a flight of three.

Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers both agree that things may well be different if Britain leaves the union.

"If it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be," says Anna, while Oscar is concerned about regulation and labelling:

"It would also be more difficult to know what you are drinking because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

The New Street wine shop has been taken over by the wine festival. They sell wines from all over the world but today they are holding a tasting featuring wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain.

Most wine drinkers know about the region of Rioja, but Bettina Lemm is informing these festival goers about the region she represents.

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero but I think that we're still establishing ourselves."

But if the UK is an important export market, is Brexit going to throw the proverbial spanner into the works? Lemm doesn't seem too worried "I think at the moment we're pretty confident as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment," she says.

Wine used to have a rather old fashioned reputation and a comparatively elderly demographic, but this has changed enormously in recent years.

The prevalence of wine clubs popping up in the UK is an indicator of wine's increasing popularity.

Tom Harrow of Honest Grapes explains why this is "I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people," he says.

With 125 venues across the metropolis taking part in this festival, there's plenty of opportunity to enjoy it with friends.

But with such enthusiasm for wine spreading across the country, June 23 could bring disruption, according to Harrow "It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up" .

However, the future might be bright in other, unexpected ways.

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least," says Harrow, and with apologies to climate change icon Al Gore, he adds that "global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

Reports by the WSTA (Wine and Spirit Trade Association) suggest there is still some way to go as the UK comes in at number six on the list of sales of sparkling wine by origin - but it's rising year on year.

600 million bottles of wine are bottled in the UK.

This makes the UK wine market the sixth largest in the world, generating 173 billion British pounds of economic activity, according to the WSTA. 10 billion British pounds are made through sales.

Also being showcased here is one of the new kids on the alcohol block, Regal Rogue Vermouth.

According to brand founder Mark Ward, vermouth, by definition, is 75 percent wine. It must have wormwood and it must have an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 15 to 24 percent. These three things have to be in place for a producer to put vermouth on the bottle or it flouts recent EU regulations.

Ward, who was brought up in hospitality, began the project in Australia where he worked closely with top Australian chefs who introduced him to indigenous herbs and spices.

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort." he says.

Ward is attempting to educate the wine drinking market which, he believes, is mostly unaware of the fact that vermouth is fundamentally a wine.

This can only be helped by a new pop up for 2016, the Vermouth Bar.

The parent company of London Wine Week is the aptly named "Drink Up London", and they're already preparing for the 2017 event - Brexit or no Brexit.

LEAD IN:

UK wine industry experts are eyeing the upcoming vote on whether to leave the European Union with mixed feelings.

With producers and suppliers heavily reliant on pan-European trade, many remain unsure how Brexit will impact upon business.

STORY-LINE:

Sparkling wine on a summer's day in the English capital.

Glistening flutes and bottles in abundance, and a crowd of happy lunchtime drinkers add to the atmosphere of excitement and discovery, along with an impromptu game of ping pong.

It must be London Wine Week.

This is the third year of the festival, and this year is the most popular to date.

Festival director Emma Murphy says "It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved" .

But although these flutes of fizz are English sparkling wine, much of the wine the festival goers here are tasting is from EU member states such as France, Spain, Portugal, Italy and Germany.

The June 23 referendum on whether to quit the European Union is fast approaching. So is this something the industry should fear?

"I wouldn't have said so," says Murphy.

"Wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

At the festival hub on London's Devonshire Square, there are pop-up bars featuring wines from across Europe.

These two young graduate trainees are enjoying wines from Portugal, and with their festival wristband, it costs them just five British Pounds for a flight of three.

Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers both agree that things may well be different if Britain leaves the union.

"If it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be," says Anna, while Oscar is concerned about regulation and labelling:

"It would also be more difficult to know what you are drinking because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

The New Street wine shop has been taken over by the wine festival. They sell wines from all over the world but today they are holding a tasting featuring wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain.

Most wine drinkers know about the region of Rioja, but Bettina Lemm is informing these festival goers about the region she represents.

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero but I think that we're still establishing ourselves."

But if the UK is an important export market, is Brexit going to throw the proverbial spanner into the works? Lemm doesn't seem too worried "I think at the moment we're pretty confident as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment," she says.

Wine used to have a rather old fashioned reputation and a comparatively elderly demographic, but this has changed enormously in recent years.

The prevalence of wine clubs popping up in the UK is an indicator of wine's increasing popularity.

Tom Harrow of Honest Grapes explains why this is "I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people," he says.

With 125 venues across the metropolis taking part in this festival, there's plenty of opportunity to enjoy it with friends.

But with such enthusiasm for wine spreading across the country, June 23 could bring disruption, according to Harrow "It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up" .

However, the future might be bright in other, unexpected ways.

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least," says Harrow, and with apologies to climate change icon Al Gore, he adds that "global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

Reports by the WSTA (Wine and Spirit Trade Association) suggest there is still some way to go as the UK comes in at number six on the list of sales of sparkling wine by origin - but it's rising year on year.

600 million bottles of wine are bottled in the UK.

This makes the UK wine market the sixth largest in the world, generating 173 billion British pounds of economic activity, according to the WSTA. 10 billion British pounds are made through sales.

Also being showcased here is one of the new kids on the alcohol block, Regal Rogue Vermouth.

According to brand founder Mark Ward, vermouth, by definition, is 75 percent wine. It must have wormwood and it must have an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 15 to 24 percent. These three things have to be in place for a producer to put vermouth on the bottle or it flouts recent EU regulations.

Ward, who was brought up in hospitality, began the project in Australia where he worked closely with top Australian chefs who introduced him to indigenous herbs and spices.

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort." he says.

Ward is attempting to educate the wine drinking market which, he believes, is mostly unaware of the fact that vermouth is fundamentally a wine.

This can only be helped by a new pop up for 2016, the Vermouth Bar.

The parent company of London Wine Week is the aptly named "Drink Up London", and they're already preparing for the 2017 event - Brexit or no Brexit.

AP Television

London - 27 May 2016

1. Close of wine glasses

2. Bartender pouring sparkling wine

3. Tilt down on central courtyard at Devonshire Square, the hub for London Wine Week

4. Group of friends enjoying English sparkling wine

5. Men playing table tennis

6. Sign reading (English) "London Wine Week"

7. Set up shot of Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

"What's unique about it? It's the largest self-guided wine tasting that there is across London. It's kind of the only event of its kind that we have over here. So we work with 125 bars, restaurants, independent merchants who all get involved whether that's with offers, special menus or ticketed events across the week."

9. Two women with wine flight selection

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Emma Murphy, director of London Wine Week

(Responding to the question Do you think a Brexit will affect the wine industry negatively?)

"I wouldn't have said so, because I mean, I think, you know, wine trade has been going for long enough, even long before the euro, so I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference to be honest with you. Hopefully not anyway."

11. Sign reading (English) "Pop into our pop up wine bars"

12. Various of Portuguese wine pop up

13. Mid of graduate trainees in insurance Oscar Stenpom and Anna Rogers

14. Flight of Portuguese wines

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Oscar Stenbom and Anna Rogers, Insurance Graduate Trainees:

(Responding to question Do you think a Brexit will mean it will be more difficult for people to access quality wine?)

Stenbom: "Yes,"

Rogers: "I guess so, I mean if it's more expensive for them to send the wine here, if there's more tariffs, then yeah I guess it would be."

Stenbom: "It would also be more difficult to know what you're drinking, because there won't be as many restrictions on labelling the wine based on where it's actually from and the grape it's actually come from."

16. Pull focus of Spanish wine labels

17. Vintage bottles of fortified wine

18. Side view of Spanish wine bottles

19. Set up shot of Bettina Lemm with wines from Ribera del Duero in northern Spain

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Bettina Lemm, Westbury Communications (which represents the Ribera del Duero region in the UK):

"I think they (wines of Ribera del Duero) are still an emerging market, especially in the UK. The UK is an important market for Ribera del Duero, it's the seventh-largest export market for Ribera del Duero, but I think that we're still establishing ourselves. A lot of people know some big names from the region, and we're just trying to bring attention to some other grape producers who might not yet have the same recognition."

21. Close of wine labels

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Bettina Lemm, Westbury Communications (who represent the Ribera del Duero region in the UK):

(Responding to the question are you worried about the possibility of a Brexit affecting your export market?)

"I think at the moment we're pretty confident, as we've seen year to year that exports have grown. I think that's going to continue and I don't think it's a worry that we have at the moment."

23. Pan from mediaeval knight sculpture to pop up courtyard

24. Mid of Provence wines pop up

25. Establisher shot of Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes Wine Club

26. Close of Harrow eyeing the wine

27. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"There's been a real rise in wine clubs in London and the UK generally of late, and I think this is because people want to engage more with what's in the bottle. It's not just liquid, they want to know the stories behind it, they want to meet the people involved. And there's the sociable aspect, you know wine is fundamentally something which we do with other people."

28. Mid of woman laughing over a glass of wine

29. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"It's fair to say that we're a bit concerned about the possibilities of Brexit, I think the rising price of the euro against the pound will have a serious effect on quality wine. At the moment more than 60 percent of wine that comes into the UK is shipped in massive great tankers and then bottled over here and that's not something we get involved with. But that becomes the only affordable way if the pound plummets against the euro. So I think that it won't be a good thing initially for the wine consumer because the prices of these small artisan wines will go up."

30. Woman at table with wine

31. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Harrow, wine director of Honest Grapes:

"All the English wine makers that I speak to say we are half a degree away from being a perfect climate for sparkling wines at least - and even the whites, and to an extent the reds are really coming up. So I have to say it - sorry Al Gore - global warming is a good thing for the UK sparkling wine trade."

32. Various of English rose and white sparkling wines

33. Vermouth being poured into a glass

34. Various of "Regal Rogue" Vermouth bottle

35. Tilt up of Mark Ward, founder of Regal Rogue vermouth, and his produce

36. SOUNDBITE (English) Mark Ward, founder of Regal Rogue vermouth:

"It seemed like a really obvious thing to do, marrying the herbs and spices with this abundance of Australian wine to create a New World style of vermouth. And you know the tradition of vermouth is really led by the European markets. You know, Italian, French, now Spanish - but now there are vermouths coming out of America, the UK, Germany and obviously Australia. So pretty much anywhere where you find wine now, you will find a vermouth of some sort."

37. Crowd of London Wine Week attendees at the Vermouth Bar

38. Mid of vermouth cocktails being made

39. Focus pull of sign reading (English) "Drink Up"

LENGTH: 6:02

LEADIN

Food poverty has been rising in the UK, in the wake of years of economic austerity.

Now the Conservative government has called a snap-election on June 8, increasing uncertainty about future government policies.

Community activists in London are providing free meals and a food-sharing fridge to help low-income residents and reduce food waste.

STORYLINE

Cranberry and walnut cakes sell for a couple of pounds (2.5 USD) at the Ritzy Cinema cafe in Brixton, south London.

But many are often thrown away once they've reached their best before dates, contributing to food waste in the local community.

That's despite the fact that they are still perfectly good to eat and there are plenty of mouths that would want them.

But there's a new community effort to hold back the tide of discarded processed and fresh goods.

A group of 25 food activists people came up with the idea of starting a People's Fridge, in a shared workspace for start-ups, small businesses and social entrepreneurs, called Impact Hub Brixton.

The People's Fridge is a public fridge where local businesses and residents can leave spare, edible food for others.

And so employees at the Ritzy Cinema now bring their cafe's surplus cakes for people in the community to have for free, rather than sending it to landfill.

"We heard about it, a staff member had come down and heard about the project and it just seemed like a great idea," says Sarah Cook, the Ritzy Cinema's Marketing Manager.

"Businesses like ours, we waste a lot of food off, to then donate it to people in need and help support the community in Brixton, which we are a big part of, is kind of important to us."

Organisers held a crowdfunding campaign to get the fridge project started, raising more than £2,000 (2,556 USD).

Volunteers run the fridge to cut food waste, encourage food sharing and help tackle food poverty.

One of the co-founders, Rebecca Trevalyan, says after a couple of months of the fridge being open there's brisk activity.

"We're seeing lots of donations coming into the fridge, it has been certainly full over the last couple of weeks," Trevalyan says.

According to the founders, food waste is a big issue in the UK valued at around £17 billion (21bn USD) each year, with restaurants throwing away 900,000 tonnes of food annually.

"In terms of demand for it, and need for food, we know that increasing numbers of people are turning to food banks, unfortunately, and we know that food banks don't currently offer fresh food," Trevalyan says.

"There is therefore a gap for the fridge in providing that fresh source of food, but also being a smart way to deal with food surplus."

Trevalyan adds that it is not only the very poor who are in need of help.

"There are lots of people who are in work who are receiving an income but who still can't afford the rising costs of food and who really benefit from such initiatives.

"Here, from my experience, it certainly feels like there is demand and the demand is rising."

The fridge appears to be mutually beneficial.

"Food we've put on the shelves, or had put on the shelves is generally leaving the shelves within 36 hours of it being there," Trevalyan says.

The founders were inspired by similar fridges in Spain, Germany, and India as well as Somerset and Derbyshire in the UK. But this is the first time the concept has been brought to London.

They know that the fridge will not end the issue of food poverty, but it is one of a number of methods which can be used to combat the problem.

This is as UK welfare benefits have been cut over recent years.

According to the Trussell Trust, that runs food banks across the UK, it distributed more than 519,000 three-day emergency food supplies to people in crisis from April to September 2016. That's up from about 113,000 such parcels for the same period in 2012.

It says the primary reasons for food bank referral are benefit changes and delays and low incomes, issues some say are at risk further from a potentially weakened UK economy post Brexit.

Now that a general election in the UK has been called for 8 June, uncertainty is rife.

One organisation offering free meals in 34 locations across the country, has already seen greater pressure on its services in recent years.

"About a year and a half ago, a local drop in centre for elderly people closed down. It used to serve a hot meal everyday for people over the age of 50," says Alex Cameron, a volunteer at the charity Food Cycle in London's Marylebone.

"And with the closure of that, lots of people were left without a central place to come and meet. It was really damaging to the community actually,"

Food Cycle aims to relieve food poverty and provide a community for people to be a part of. It takes food surplus donations, primarily from supermarkets, and cooks meals for people to attend.

Since the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union in June 2016, the country has already seen price rises in imported food products, as the British sterling has fallen in value. Food prices are expected to grow by between 5 percent and 8 percent in 2017, according to the Food and Drink Federation.

Cameron says she has seen an impact already: "Well, I have to admit I've noticed that the price of the butter that we buy goes up.

"So as a charity we're going to have to start spending more on the extra food that we buy to compliment the food that's surplus.

"I also think that it will have a knock-on effect when basic ingredients and foods go up in price. These are the people that are most affected by that."

One analyst says further inflation and economic instability as the Brexit process completes could increase the already record number of people using free food sources.

"I think Brexit is going to have a negative impact on incomes across the whole spectrum, high-income earners and low-income earners. But the difference is that low-income earners have less room for manoeuvre," says Sarah Boumphrey, Director of Economies and Consumers at the market researchers Euromonitor.

The team behind the People's Fridge think that, if their project is successful, they can help others set up community fridges across the UK.

And, although they may not want it, conditions may be right for just that.

London, UK - 12 April 2017

1. Various two employees of the Ritzy Cinema in Brixton, delivering cakes to the People's Fridge

2. Can of soup and box of cranberry and walnut cakes in the People's Fridge

3. Tilt down fridge

4. Rack focus of sign on fridge reading (English) "I help cut food waste"

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Cook, Marketing Manager, Ritzy Cinema:

"We heard about it, a staff member had come down and heard about the project and it just seemed like a great idea. Businesses like ours, we waste a lot of food off, to then donate it to people who are in need and help support the community in Brixton, which we are a big part of, is kind of important to us."

6. Pan right of street in Brixton to exterior of Ritzy Cinema

7. Various of people in the Ritzy Cinema bar and cafe eating and drinking

8. Various of person taking food from the People's Fridge

9. Set up shot of Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"Food we've put on the shelves, or we've had put on the shelves is generally leaving the shelves within 36 hours of it being there."

11. Various of onions and greens in the fridge

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"We're seeing lots of donations coming into the fridge, it has been certainly full over the last couple of weeks. In terms of demand for it, and need for food, we know that increasing numbers of people are turning to food banks unfortunately and we know that food banks don't currently offer fresh food. There is therefore a gap for the fridge in providing that fresh source of food, but also being a smart way to deal with food surplus."

13. People walking past fridge

14. Food items in the fridge

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"There are lots of people who are in work who are receiving an income, but who still can't afford the rising costs of food and who really benefit from such initiatives. Here, from my experience, it certainly feels like there is demand and the demand is rising."

16. Various of people eating at a dinner held by Food Cycle in a church in Marylebone

17. Maggie at the table with other diners

18. Maggie in front of a bowl of food

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Maggie (No last name given), Marylebone resident

"Oh, it helps you a lot really. If you are only on your pension. But yes, very, very good. It's good all round and they're lovely people here."

20. Volunteers preparing food in the kitchen

21. Volunteer Alex Cameron serving diners

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Alex Cameron, volunteer:

"About a year and a half ago, a local drop in centre for elderly people closed down. It used to serve a hot meal everyday for people over the age of 50. And with the closure of that lots of people were left without a central place to come and meet. It was really damaging to the community actually."

23. Volunteer preparing food in the kitchen

24. SOUNDBITE (English) Alex Cameron, volunteer:

"Well, I have to admit I've noticed that the price of the butter that we buy goes up. So as a charity we're going to have to start spending more on the extra food that we buy to compliment the food that's surplus. I also think that it will have a knock-on effect when basic ingredients and foods go up in price, these are the people that are most affected by that."

25. Various of woman eating

26. Set up shot of Sarah Boumphrey, Director, Economies and Consumers for market researchers Euromonitor

27. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Boumphrey, Director, Economies and Consumers for Euromonitor:

"I think Brexit is going to have a negative impact on incomes across the whole spectrum, high-income earners and low-income earners. But the difference is that low-income earners have less room for manoeuvre. They can't direct their spending elsewhere. They can't save less to help with higher food prices. So they have less of a security net."

28. A diner at Food Cycle

29. An empty bowl

30. Diners at Food Cycle

31. Various of a man taking food from the People's Fridge

FOR CLEAN VERSION SEE STORY NUMBER: 4053826

LEAD IN:

Chocolates made with reindeer moss and 'duck crackling' are among the innovations at a speciality food fair in London.

Since the Brexit vote, many British producers are concerned that they can no longer rely on the EU market and are beginning to look to the east.

STORY-LINE:

It looks like intricately stitched fabric, but these are colourful cakes based on eastern henna designs.

The bright gold reds and pinks are aiming at markets all over the world. The company is called Sari after the ornately designed garments traditionally worn by women in India.

The foods and drinks found here are aimed at the top end of the market.

Many stall holders are hoping to find favour with restaurateurs, luxury food wholesalers, or high end supermarkets.

The director of the Speciality and Fine Food Fair is Soraya Gadelrab.

Gadelrab believes the UK especially London has an international cuisine that other markets are opening up to.

That's why next year there will see the launch of the Asian Speciality Food Fair in Singapore, a lucrative market chosen because consumers there are wealthy and becoming more cosmopolitan.

Gadelrab says: "People see the UK and London as ahead of the trends when it comes to food and drink and the latest products, the latest ways of eating, the latest styles, the latest diets, and I think that's something that countries around the world sometimes look to the UK and more specifically London to see what we're doing and at this show there's so many countries represented, there's so much food from around the world and we eat globally here in the UK every day. But not all countries do that and what we're finding is that other countries are starting to catch up with us so we're actually taking this show to Singapore next year and launching Speciality and Fine Food Asia."

Despite warnings from President Obama at the G20 summit in China at the weekend, Gadelrab is not gloomy about Britain's food industry after the UK leaves Britain.

She says: "Artisan biscuits, pies, it's a huge market there's the expat(riot) community, but there's also quite an affluent consumer there and they want the latest, the greatest products imported from all around the world and British food is really up there."

This company has been exporting gourmet Italian foods into Britain for forty years.

It's owner Toni Pirozzi helped to blaze the trail which has ensured that many people in Britain consume cheeses, hams, pastas and sauces which wouldn't have been easily available a few decades ago.

Exporters like Pirozzi see the UK as an important market.

While he isn't gloomy about the luxury food market, he believes there will be a downward pressure on prices.

According to Pirozzi: "Being in the exit (Brexit from EU) from the common market I think it's going to be a little problem for the Italian product. But not too much because the product is not going to be successful, but it's going to be a little outpriced and quite a lot of imitations, they're coming out produced in every part of the world, which they call Italian product, but they are not original."

Concern about authenticity is something that many food producers are worried about.

Tight restrictions in EU law ensure that the products of particular regions are protected.

For example you can't make sparkling wine and call champagne unless it's from the champagne produce region in France.

Pirozzi gives the example of a particular kind of Sicilian tomato.

"If you look at the ciliegino di Pachino, the original ciliegino di Pachino, only from Pachino do you have a different flavour, the vitamins, everything inside is beautiful because the area of Pachino is an area which is very salty, very windy and very hot. Now if you go only thirty kilometres from Pachino, you buy the same ciliegino, it looks the same. Now ciliegino comes from everywhere and the price...(gesticulates that the price goes down)."

A concern for luxury food producers in the UK is whether shoppers post-Brexit will still be happy to pay more for specialist products.

Gadelrab is optimistic: "People still want those beautiful indulgences and this is what this fair is all about, the handcrafted products with all the best ingredients, full of flavour, exciting flavour combinations and I think that's not something that's going to go away because when times are tough, maybe people scrimp on holidays and big TVs, but they're still going to treat themselves to a beautiful cake, or some lovely ham, or some hand reared beef, so it's here to stay."

New ideas and producers are developing all the time.

Adam Wilding is launching his new product here at the fair after three long years of testing and developing a 'duck crackling' to take on the British pork crackling market.

Crispy duck skins are sold in delicatessens in France and of course the Chinese gourmands have been creating crispy duck skin for centuries, but Wilding believes he's the first to think of marketing it in this way.

He says: "We've a good connection with pork crackling, this idea came about when I was running a menu for a canape event and just as I was going to sleep I thought, you know these ideas come to you sometimes at night, but the idea was to have crispy duck skin as a canape base. On top of that we put some duck pate and it kind of went so well that a little spark went off."

This product has yet to be distributed and Wilding doesn't want disclose who he is in talks with, but he says it is going well.

"There's an overwhelming interest, you can see this moment where people's brains, they compute the idea and they suddenly get it and they are like 'oh yes, I understand what this is'."

After a savoury snack, it's time for something sweet - and another launch of a very unusual product.

Not this actual size shoe adorned with artificial pearls, but something that Nordic and Scandinavian countries will recognise.

Chocolala is an Estonian company which has high hopes for these little bundles of reindeer moss chocolates

It's run by Kristi Lehtis, who goes hunting for the moss in the forests near her home, rather like the reindeer do.

She also forages for wild fruits to put in her chocolates.

"Blueberries and moss they grow together and while I was picking blueberries I thought it would be nice to take something from the forest along, something more and the moss is actually widely used by the chefs as well at the restaurants," she says.

"You can make it with beetroot for example and it's a pink moss, but we make it with chocolate you can caramelise it, we have lots of different ways and it gives texture because it's nice to have the chocolate plus the texture so together it's a great product and something that people haven't tried. There are a lot of people who want something special who have tried everything and they don't know what to give as a present, so this something that they haven't tried."

It remains to be seen whether chocolate moss will be appearing on people's Christmas lists this year.

London, UK - 4 September 2016

1. Close tilt up of ornately decorated cake inspired by henna designs

2. Close zoom out of silver cake

3. Pan of differently decorated cakes

4. Close zoom in on giant chocolate nuts and small glazed chocolates

5. Wide of chocolate producer talking to potential client

6. Wide of chocolate box with graphic designs

7. Close zoom in to artisanal Scotch eggs

8. Mid of man on pie stall chopping eggs for people to taste

9. Close of eggs

10. Wide of specialist bread and cake stall

11. Close tilt up of pies and breads

12. Zoom in to barrel of cheese

13. Mid of staff on Italian food stall

14. Various of event director Soraya Gadelrab trying specialist cheese at Italian stall

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, director, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"People see the UK and London as ahead of the trends when it comes to food and drink and the latest products, the latest ways of eating, the latest styles, the latest diets, and I think that's something that countries around the world sometimes look to the UK and more specifically London to see what we're doing and at this show there's so many countries represented, there's so much food from around the world and we eat globally here in the UK every day. But not all countries do that and what we're finding is that other countries are starting to catch up with us so we're actually taking this show to Singapore next year and launching Speciality and Fine Food Asia."

16. Mid zoom in on large flavoured meringues

17. Wide pan of chocolate shop

18. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, director, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"Artisan biscuits, pies, it's a huge market there's the expat(riot) community, but there's also quite an affluent consumer there and they want the latest, the greatest products imported from all around the world and British food is really up there."

19. Close of spoon scooping out Gorgonzola cheese

20. Mid of Toni Pirozzi, Italian food and specialist cheese exporter, giving his colleague the spoonful of Gorgonzola

21. Close of man tasting and savouring cheese

22. Close zoom in to Gorgonzola

23. SOUNDBITE: (English) Toni Pirozzi, Italian food exporter

"Being in the exit (Brexit from EU) from the common market, I think it's going to be a little problem for the Italian product. But not too much because the product is not going to be successful, but it's going to be a little outpriced and quite a lot of imitations, they're coming out produced in every part of the world, which they call Italian product, but they are not original."

24. Close of Gorgonzola being scooped out

25. SOUNDBITE: (English) Toni Pirozzi, Italian food exporter

"If you look at the ciliegino di Pachino, the original ciliegino di Pachino, only from Pachino do you have a different flavour, the vitamins, everything inside is beautiful because the area of Pachino is an area which is very salty, very windy and very hot. Now if you go only thirty kilometres from Pachino, you buy the same ciliegino, it looks the same. Now ciliegino comes from everywhere and the price...(gesticulates that the price goes down)."

26. Wide of food fair

27. Top mid of specialist food seller speaking to client

28. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"People still want those beautiful indulgences and this is what this fair is all about, the handcrafted products with all the best ingredients, full of flavour, exciting flavour combinations and I think that's not something that's going to go away because when times are tough, maybe people scrimp on holidays and big TVs, but they're still going to treat themselves to a beautiful cake, or some lovely ham, or some hand reared beef, so it's here to stay."

29. Mid of passerby being offered taste of crispy duck skin snacks described as duck crackling

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Adam Wilding, chef and inventor of "Duck Crackling"

"We've a good connection with pork crackling, this idea came about when I was running a menu for a canape event and just as I was going to sleep I thought, you know these ideas come to you sometimes at night, but the idea was to have crispy duck skin as a canape base. On top of that we put some duck pate and it kind of went so well that a little spark went off."

31. Close of duck crackling in pots on tray

32. Mid of Wilding talking to colleague

33. Close of Wilding

34. Close of pots

35. SOUNDBITE: (English) Adam Wilding, chef and inventor of "Duck Crackling"

"There's an overwhelming interest, you can see this moment where people's brains, they compute the idea and they suddenly get it and they are like 'oh yes, I understand what this is'."

36. Close of chocolate shoe in real shoe size

37. Various of chocolate shoe being held outside of box

38. Close of reindeer moss chocolates being put into gift box

39. Close of moss chocolate

40. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kristi Lehtis, specialist chocolate maker, Chocolala

"So moss is a very special product."

41. Close of reindeer moss chocolate

42. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kristi Lehtis, specialist chocolate maker, Chocolala

"Blueberries and moss they grow together and while I was picking blueberries I thought it would be nice to take something from the forest along, something more and the moss is actually widely used by the chefs as well at the restaurants because you can make it with beetroot for example and it's a pink moss, but we make it with chocolate you can caramelise it we have lots of different ways and it gives texture because it's nice to have the chocolate plus the texture so together it's a great product and something that people haven't tried. There are a lot of people who want something special who have tried everything and they don't know what to give as a present, so this something that they haven't tried."

43. Close of carton filled with reindeer moss

44. Close of Lehtis

45. Mid of Lehtis filling gift box

LEAD IN:

Chocolates made with reindeer moss and 'duck crackling' are among the innovations at a speciality food fair in London.

Since the Brexit vote, many British producers are concerned that they can no longer rely on the EU market and are beginning to look to the east.

STORY-LINE:

It looks like intricately stitched fabric, but these are colourful cakes based on eastern henna designs.

The bright gold reds and pinks are aiming at markets all over the world. The company is called Sari after the ornately designed garments traditionally worn by women in India.

The foods and drinks found here are aimed at the top end of the market.

Many stall holders are hoping to find favour with restaurateurs, luxury food wholesalers, or high end supermarkets.

The director of the Speciality and Fine Food Fair is Soraya Gadelrab.

Gadelrab believes the UK especially London has an international cuisine that other markets are opening up to.

That's why next year there will see the launch of the Asian Speciality Food Fair in Singapore, a lucrative market chosen because consumers there are wealthy and becoming more cosmopolitan.

Gadelrab says: "People see the UK and London as ahead of the trends when it comes to food and drink and the latest products, the latest ways of eating, the latest styles, the latest diets, and I think that's something that countries around the world sometimes look to the UK and more specifically London to see what we're doing and at this show there's so many countries represented, there's so much food from around the world and we eat globally here in the UK every day. But not all countries do that and what we're finding is that other countries are starting to catch up with us so we're actually taking this show to Singapore next year and launching Speciality and Fine Food Asia."

Despite warnings from President Obama at the G20 summit in China at the weekend, Gadelrab is not gloomy about Britain's food industry after the UK leaves Britain.

She says: "Artisan biscuits, pies, it's a huge market there's the expat(riot) community, but there's also quite an affluent consumer there and they want the latest, the greatest products imported from all around the world and British food is really up there."

This company has been exporting gourmet Italian foods into Britain for forty years.

It's owner Toni Pirozzi helped to blaze the trail which has ensured that many people in Britain consume cheeses, hams, pastas and sauces which wouldn't have been easily available a few decades ago.

Exporters like Pirozzi see the UK as an important market.

While he isn't gloomy about the luxury food market, he believes there will be a downward pressure on prices.

According to Pirozzi: "Being in the exit (Brexit from EU) from the common market I think it's going to be a little problem for the Italian product. But not too much because the product is not going to be successful, but it's going to be a little outpriced and quite a lot of imitations, they're coming out produced in every part of the world, which they call Italian product, but they are not original."

Concern about authenticity is something that many food producers are worried about.

Tight restrictions in EU law ensure that the products of particular regions are protected.

For example you can't make sparkling wine and call champagne unless it's from the champagne produce region in France.

Pirozzi gives the example of a particular kind of Sicilian tomato.

"If you look at the ciliegino di Pachino, the original ciliegino di Pachino, only from Pachino do you have a different flavour, the vitamins, everything inside is beautiful because the area of Pachino is an area which is very salty, very windy and very hot. Now if you go only thirty kilometres from Pachino, you buy the same ciliegino, it looks the same. Now ciliegino comes from everywhere and the price...(gesticulates that the price goes down)."

A concern for luxury food producers in the UK is whether shoppers post-Brexit will still be happy to pay more for specialist products.

Gadelrab is optimistic: "People still want those beautiful indulgences and this is what this fair is all about, the handcrafted products with all the best ingredients, full of flavour, exciting flavour combinations and I think that's not something that's going to go away because when times are tough, maybe people scrimp on holidays and big TVs, but they're still going to treat themselves to a beautiful cake, or some lovely ham, or some hand reared beef, so it's here to stay."

New ideas and producers are developing all the time.

Adam Wilding is launching his new product here at the fair after three long years of testing and developing a 'duck crackling' to take on the British pork crackling market.

Crispy duck skins are sold in delicatessens in France and of course the Chinese gourmands have been creating crispy duck skin for centuries, but Wilding believes he's the first to think of marketing it in this way.

He says: "We've a good connection with pork crackling, this idea came about when I was running a menu for a canape event and just as I was going to sleep I thought, you know these ideas come to you sometimes at night, but the idea was to have crispy duck skin as a canape base. On top of that we put some duck pate and it kind of went so well that a little spark went off."

This product has yet to be distributed and Wilding doesn't want disclose who he is in talks with, but he says it is going well.

"There's an overwhelming interest, you can see this moment where people's brains, they compute the idea and they suddenly get it and they are like 'oh yes, I understand what this is'."

After a savoury snack, it's time for something sweet - and another launch of a very unusual product.

Not this actual size shoe adorned with artificial pearls, but something that Nordic and Scandinavian countries will recognise.

Chocolala is an Estonian company which has high hopes for these little bundles of reindeer moss chocolates

It's run by Kristi Lehtis, who goes hunting for the moss in the forests near her home, rather like the reindeer do.

She also forages for wild fruits to put in her chocolates.

"Blueberries and moss they grow together and while I was picking blueberries I thought it would be nice to take something from the forest along, something more and the moss is actually widely used by the chefs as well at the restaurants," she says.

"You can make it with beetroot for example and it's a pink moss, but we make it with chocolate you can caramelise it, we have lots of different ways and it gives texture because it's nice to have the chocolate plus the texture so together it's a great product and something that people haven't tried. There are a lot of people who want something special who have tried everything and they don't know what to give as a present, so this something that they haven't tried."

It remains to be seen whether chocolate moss will be appearing on people's Christmas lists this year.

London, UK - 4 September 2016

1. Close tilt up of ornately decorated cake inspired by henna designs

2. Close zoom out of silver cake

3. Pan of differently decorated cakes

4. Close zoom in on giant chocolate nuts and small glazed chocolates

5. Wide of chocolate producer talking to potential client

6. Wide of chocolate box with graphic designs

7. Close zoom in to artisanal Scotch eggs

8. Mid of man on pie stall chopping eggs for people to taste

9. Close of eggs

10. Wide of specialist bread and cake stall

11. Close tilt up of pies and breads

12. Zoom in to barrel of cheese

13. Mid of staff on Italian food stall

14. Various of event director Soraya Gadelrab trying specialist cheese at Italian stall

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, director, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"People see the UK and London as ahead of the trends when it comes to food and drink and the latest products, the latest ways of eating, the latest styles, the latest diets, and I think that's something that countries around the world sometimes look to the UK and more specifically London to see what we're doing and at this show there's so many countries represented, there's so much food from around the world and we eat globally here in the UK every day. But not all countries do that and what we're finding is that other countries are starting to catch up with us so we're actually taking this show to Singapore next year and launching Speciality and Fine Food Asia."

16. Mid zoom in on large flavoured meringues

17. Wide pan of chocolate shop

18. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, director, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"Artisan biscuits, pies, it's a huge market there's the expat(riot) community, but there's also quite an affluent consumer there and they want the latest, the greatest products imported from all around the world and British food is really up there."

19. Close of spoon scooping out Gorgonzola cheese

20. Mid of Toni Pirozzi, Italian food and specialist cheese exporter, giving his colleague the spoonful of Gorgonzola

21. Close of man tasting and savouring cheese

22. Close zoom in to Gorgonzola

23. SOUNDBITE: (English) Toni Pirozzi, Italian food exporter

"Being in the exit (Brexit from EU) from the common market, I think it's going to be a little problem for the Italian product. But not too much because the product is not going to be successful, but it's going to be a little outpriced and quite a lot of imitations, they're coming out produced in every part of the world, which they call Italian product, but they are not original."

24. Close of Gorgonzola being scooped out

25. SOUNDBITE: (English) Toni Pirozzi, Italian food exporter

"If you look at the ciliegino di Pachino, the original ciliegino di Pachino, only from Pachino do you have a different flavour, the vitamins, everything inside is beautiful because the area of Pachino is an area which is very salty, very windy and very hot. Now if you go only thirty kilometres from Pachino, you buy the same ciliegino, it looks the same. Now ciliegino comes from everywhere and the price...(gesticulates that the price goes down)."

26. Wide of food fair

27. Top mid of specialist food seller speaking to client

28. SOUNDBITE: (English) Soraya Gadelrab, Speciality and Fine Food Fair

"People still want those beautiful indulgences and this is what this fair is all about, the handcrafted products with all the best ingredients, full of flavour, exciting flavour combinations and I think that's not something that's going to go away because when times are tough, maybe people scrimp on holidays and big TVs, but they're still going to treat themselves to a beautiful cake, or some lovely ham, or some hand reared beef, so it's here to stay."

29. Mid of passerby being offered taste of crispy duck skin snacks described as duck crackling

30. SOUNDBITE: (English) Adam Wilding, chef and inventor of "Duck Crackling"

"We've a good connection with pork crackling, this idea came about when I was running a menu for a canape event and just as I was going to sleep I thought, you know these ideas come to you sometimes at night, but the idea was to have crispy duck skin as a canape base. On top of that we put some duck pate and it kind of went so well that a little spark went off."

31. Close of duck crackling in pots on tray

32. Mid of Wilding talking to colleague

33. Close of Wilding

34. Close of pots

35. SOUNDBITE: (English) Adam Wilding, chef and inventor of "Duck Crackling"

"There's an overwhelming interest, you can see this moment where people's brains, they compute the idea and they suddenly get it and they are like 'oh yes, I understand what this is'."

36. Close of chocolate shoe in real shoe size

37. Various of chocolate shoe being held outside of box

38. Close of reindeer moss chocolates being put into gift box

39. Close of moss chocolate

40. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kristi Lehtis, specialist chocolate maker, Chocolala

"So moss is a very special product."

41. Close of reindeer moss chocolate

42. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kristi Lehtis, specialist chocolate maker, Chocolala

"Blueberries and moss they grow together and while I was picking blueberries I thought it would be nice to take something from the forest along, something more and the moss is actually widely used by the chefs as well at the restaurants because you can make it with beetroot for example and it's a pink moss, but we make it with chocolate you can caramelise it we have lots of different ways and it gives texture because it's nice to have the chocolate plus the texture so together it's a great product and something that people haven't tried. There are a lot of people who want something special who have tried everything and they don't know what to give as a present, so this something that they haven't tried."

43. Close of carton filled with reindeer moss

44. Close of Lehtis

45. Mid of Lehtis filling gift box

LEADIN:

British food and drink producers are feeling the strains of Brexit at The International Food and Drink Event (IFE) in London.

The UK government announced today (Monday 20 March) that it will trigger Article 50 on March 29, which will formally begin the Brexit process.

With the uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the negotiations, many producers are considering expansion into new markets, particularly the United States.

STORYLINE:

Things are sizzling in London at IFE, the UK's largest food and drink trade show, with more than 29,000 visitors expected to attend.

The show brings together over 1,350 food producers from around the world - like this beefsteak from Poland.

Or these kebabs from Turkey...

Giant onions from Spain...

Or how about a mouthful of Chinese seaweed salad?

But by far the largest contingent at the event is from the UK, which is acting as the show's partner country for the first time.

This year's show features more than 700 British food and drink producers and gives them a shop window for the international buyers in attendance.

But uncertainty over Brexit is overshadowing the event, with Article 50 expected to be triggered on March 29.

Many exhibitors are small to mid scale food and drink producers who are concerned about how a break from the European Union will impact their growing businesses.

For those north of the border in Scotland, the situation is particularly uncertain, with calls from the Scottish National Party for a second vote on independence.

Callum MacInnes is a cheese maker and founder of Island Smokery on the far northerly Orkney Islands.

He's been producing smoked cheeses and butters for a high-end market for over ten years; his products can be found at hotels including the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

MacInnes produces 40 tonnes of cheese every year and is currently moving to a larger factory to grow his business, but now he has to contend with more instability.

"It (Brexit and a second Scottish vote on independence) is alarming because we've no idea. Basically it's just more turmoil," he says.

"I mean, you have turmoil in a political situation, when people are uncertain, people don't spend, they always wait to see.

"So between another referendum and Brexit we're really between a rock and a hard place at the minute because nobody knows how it's going to pan out."

But MacInnes tries to remain positive about the political situation in Scotland and sees the benefit of new trade with the US.

With the fall in value of the pound against the dollar he has discovered his high-end cheeses and butters are suddenly much more affordable for Americans looking to invest in high-quality food.

He's just shipped his first export to the US after a positive trade event saw orders flooding in.

"It was specialist for a long time, it was maybe too expensive for the man on the street but because of the way the pound and the dollar has gone, it's now accessible to everyone," he says.

Just down the road in Orkney is one of the newest producers at the show; Kirkjuvagr gin has only been available since last August.

The company started in February, but by the time the first bottle rolled off the production line the Brexit vote had already been decided.

For Stephen Kemp, the director of Orkney Distilling Ltd., it spells trouble for his young company.

"I think Brexit doesn't necessarily spell a lot that's good right now, not for us, not out on the periphery of Britain in the north," he says.

"We very much rely on the British market and also being able to use Britain as a springboard to go to other markets round the world."

Kemp has many advantages basing his gin company in Orkney - for example, the Angelica root (one of the key botanicals used to flavour gin) grows naturally on the Scottish island.

But despite the positive reactions he's getting for his gin, Kemp says there could be difficulties ahead if the impact of Brexit on small businesses like his is not taken into consideration in the negotiations.

"It's sad to think that small producers like us will be penalised because there's been no indication how the support mechanism might work for the industries and for young companies like us," he says.

Welsh producers like the Celtic Pie Co. are also exhibiting at the show.

Like the Scots, many are also finding the prospect of Brexit negotiations a bit too salty.

Jessica Lea-Wilson is with Halen Mon Sea Salt co. from Anglesey, an island off the north coast of Wales.

Halen Mon has been hand harvesting high-end salt products from the waters around the island for the last 21 years.

A 100g packet of Anglesey sea-salt starts from around 4 British pounds (approx. $5 USD) and is called a finishing salt, added at the end of a dish rather than as a cooking ingredient.

The largest market for the Welsh company is in Spain, so a retreat from the EU is of real concern - particularly because it could mean losing its EU protected designation of origin status.

This could mean salt producers in other parts of the world could use the Anglesey name to promote their own salts.

"The protected designation of origin, this little symbol here, protected food names like Champagne or Parma ham or Melton Mowbray pork pies, this legislation is in place to protect our brands, make sure that they're not imitated and we're not quite sure what's going to happen when we leave the EU when it comes to that and that's really important to our business," says Lea-Wilson.

"So we're trying to highlight that and bring it to the government's attention."

Like many British producers at IFE, Lea-Wilson is already looking to new markets and also like many British producers she sees the US as a key growth area.

"We already have a growing market in the US and we're trying to see it as a positive thing that it might grow and that might be an opportunity for us, especially in terms of currency rates at the moment it's quite an attractive option for a lot of US buyers," she says.

Exhibitors are feeling the uncertainty, but remaining positive about the future.

Show director Soraya Gadelrab thinks there's a lot to be confident about in the British food industry.

"At the moment trading conditions are uncertain for some people and I think a big international trade show like this gives the UK suppliers an opportunity to say; 'Here we are, we're open for business.' But on top of that it shows new markets who perhaps haven't done a lot of imports from the UK previously, that we have such a plethora of on trend products to come and look at, but also it gives those buyers an opportunity to meet the suppliers face-to-face, talk to them and start talking to them about real genuine business," she says.

London attracts top chefs from around the world, who come to cook in the capital.

Peruvian chef Robert Ortiz from Lima restaurant in London is demonstrating his skills at the show.

Here he puts together a tiradito dish with raw scallops and spicy Peruvian yellow chillies.

IFE runs from 19-22 March at London's ExCel exhibition centre.

London, UK - 19 March 2017

1. Close of Polish beef steak frying on grill

2. Mid of chef speaking with show visitors

3. Close of steak being turned

4. Mid of chef serving visitors steak

5. Close of cooked steak

6. Wide of Turkish kebab

7. Close of kebab being shaved

8. Close of kebab cooking

9. Close of giant Spanish onion being placed on top of can

10. Various of Palestinian stand with dates

11. Close of bowl of seaweed salad from China

12. Various of man eating seaweed salad

13. Low shot of Callum MacInnes cutting Orkney smoked cheese

14. Close of cheese being cut

15. Close of Scottish flag of St Andrew

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Callum MacInnes, Founder of Island Smokery:

"It (Brexit and a second Scottish vote on independence) is alarming because we've no idea. Basically it's just more turmoil. I mean, you have turmoil in a political situation, when people are uncertain, people don't spend, they always wait to see. So between another referendum and Brexit we're really between a rock and a hard place at the minute because nobody knows how it's going to pan out."

17. Mid of MacInnes taking cheese from fridge

18. Close of smoked cheese being cut

19. Mid of MacInnes cutting cheese

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Callum MacInnes, Founder of Island Smokery:

"It was specialist for a long time, it was maybe too expensive for the man on the street but because of the way the pound and the dollar has gone, it's now accessible to everyone."

21. Close tilt down of Kirkjuvagr gin from Orkney, Scotland

22. Mid of Stephen Kemp of Kirkjuvagr talking with visitors

23. Close tilt up of show visitor sampling gin

24. Close of tap filling glass with gin

25. Various of Stephen Kemp drinking gin

26. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen Kemp, Director of Orkney Distilling Ltd.:

"I think Brexit doesn't necessarily spell a lot that's good right now, not for us, not out on the periphery of Britain in the north. We very much rely on the British market, we rely also on being able to use Britain as a springboard to go to other markets round the world."

27. Close of jar containing Angelica root - a key ingredient in gin

28. Close of Angelica in hand

29. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen Kemp, Director of Orkney Distilling Ltd.:

"It's sad to think that small producers like us I think will be penalised because there's been no indication of how the support mechanism might work for the industries and for young companies like us."

30. Mid pan right of sign reading: (Welsh/English) "Cymru/Wales"

31. Various of chef at the Celtic Pie Co. slicing steak and ale pie

32. Wide of Jessica Lea-Wilson from Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.

33. Close of Lea-Wilson

34. Close of bowl of sea salt

35. Mid of Lea-Wilson pouring salt into her hand

36. Close of salt in her hand

37. SOUNDBITE (English) Jessica Lea-Wilson, Brand Manager, Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.:

"The protected designation of origin, this little symbol here, protected food names like Champagne or Parma ham or Melton Mowbray pork pies, this legislation is in place to protect our brands, make sure that they're not imitated and we're not quite sure what's going to happen when we leave the EU when it comes to that and that's really important to our business. So we're trying to highlight that and bring it to the government's attention."

38. Extreme close of salt crystals in hand

39. SOUNDBITE (English) Jessica Lea-Wilson, Brand Manager, Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.:

"We already have a growing market in the US and we're trying to see it as a positive thing that it might grow and that might be an opportunity for us, especially in terms of currency rates at the moment it's quite an attractive option for a lot of US buyers."

40. Various setup shots of event director Soraya Gadelrab speaking to exhibitor

41. SOUNDBITE (English) Soraya Gadelrab, Show Director, the International Food and Drink Event:

"At the moment trading conditions are uncertain for some people and I think a big international trade show like this gives the UK suppliers an opportunity to say; 'Here we are, we're open for business.' But on top of that it shows new markets who perhaps haven't done a lot of imports from the UK previously, that we have such a plethora of on trend products to come and look at, but also it gives those buyers an opportunity to meet the suppliers face-to-face, talk to them and start talking about real genuine business."

42. Various of Robert Ortiz, chef from Lima restaurant in London, demonstrating Peruvian cooking onstage

LEADIN:

British food and drink producers are feeling the strains of Brexit at The International Food and Drink Event (IFE) in London.

The UK government announced today (Monday 20 March) that it will trigger Article 50 on March 29, which will formally begin the Brexit process.

With the uncertainty surrounding the outcome of the negotiations, many producers are considering expansion into new markets, particularly the United States.

STORYLINE:

Things are sizzling in London at IFE, the UK's largest food and drink trade show, with more than 29,000 visitors expected to attend.

The show brings together over 1,350 food producers from around the world - like this beefsteak from Poland.

Or these kebabs from Turkey...

Giant onions from Spain...

Or how about a mouthful of Chinese seaweed salad?

But by far the largest contingent at the event is from the UK, which is acting as the show's partner country for the first time.

This year's show features more than 700 British food and drink producers and gives them a shop window for the international buyers in attendance.

But uncertainty over Brexit is overshadowing the event, with Article 50 expected to be triggered on March 29.

Many exhibitors are small to mid scale food and drink producers who are concerned about how a break from the European Union will impact their growing businesses.

For those north of the border in Scotland, the situation is particularly uncertain, with calls from the Scottish National Party for a second vote on independence.

Callum MacInnes is a cheese maker and founder of Island Smokery on the far northerly Orkney Islands.

He's been producing smoked cheeses and butters for a high-end market for over ten years; his products can be found at hotels including the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.

MacInnes produces 40 tonnes of cheese every year and is currently moving to a larger factory to grow his business, but now he has to contend with more instability.

"It (Brexit and a second Scottish vote on independence) is alarming because we've no idea. Basically it's just more turmoil," he says.

"I mean, you have turmoil in a political situation, when people are uncertain, people don't spend, they always wait to see.

"So between another referendum and Brexit we're really between a rock and a hard place at the minute because nobody knows how it's going to pan out."

But MacInnes tries to remain positive about the political situation in Scotland and sees the benefit of new trade with the US.

With the fall in value of the pound against the dollar he has discovered his high-end cheeses and butters are suddenly much more affordable for Americans looking to invest in high-quality food.

He's just shipped his first export to the US after a positive trade event saw orders flooding in.

"It was specialist for a long time, it was maybe too expensive for the man on the street but because of the way the pound and the dollar has gone, it's now accessible to everyone," he says.

Just down the road in Orkney is one of the newest producers at the show; Kirkjuvagr gin has only been available since last August.

The company started in February, but by the time the first bottle rolled off the production line the Brexit vote had already been decided.

For Stephen Kemp, the director of Orkney Distilling Ltd., it spells trouble for his young company.

"I think Brexit doesn't necessarily spell a lot that's good right now, not for us, not out on the periphery of Britain in the north," he says.

"We very much rely on the British market and also being able to use Britain as a springboard to go to other markets round the world."

Kemp has many advantages basing his gin company in Orkney - for example, the Angelica root (one of the key botanicals used to flavour gin) grows naturally on the Scottish island.

But despite the positive reactions he's getting for his gin, Kemp says there could be difficulties ahead if the impact of Brexit on small businesses like his is not taken into consideration in the negotiations.

"It's sad to think that small producers like us will be penalised because there's been no indication how the support mechanism might work for the industries and for young companies like us," he says.

Welsh producers like the Celtic Pie Co. are also exhibiting at the show.

Like the Scots, many are also finding the prospect of Brexit negotiations a bit too salty.

Jessica Lea-Wilson is with Halen Mon Sea Salt co. from Anglesey, an island off the north coast of Wales.

Halen Mon has been hand harvesting high-end salt products from the waters around the island for the last 21 years.

A 100g packet of Anglesey sea-salt starts from around 4 British pounds (approx. $5 USD) and is called a finishing salt, added at the end of a dish rather than as a cooking ingredient.

The largest market for the Welsh company is in Spain, so a retreat from the EU is of real concern - particularly because it could mean losing its EU protected designation of origin status.

This could mean salt producers in other parts of the world could use the Anglesey name to promote their own salts.

"The protected designation of origin, this little symbol here, protected food names like Champagne or Parma ham or Melton Mowbray pork pies, this legislation is in place to protect our brands, make sure that they're not imitated and we're not quite sure what's going to happen when we leave the EU when it comes to that and that's really important to our business," says Lea-Wilson.

"So we're trying to highlight that and bring it to the government's attention."

Like many British producers at IFE, Lea-Wilson is already looking to new markets and also like many British producers she sees the US as a key growth area.

"We already have a growing market in the US and we're trying to see it as a positive thing that it might grow and that might be an opportunity for us, especially in terms of currency rates at the moment it's quite an attractive option for a lot of US buyers," she says.

Exhibitors are feeling the uncertainty, but remaining positive about the future.

Show director Soraya Gadelrab thinks there's a lot to be confident about in the British food industry.

"At the moment trading conditions are uncertain for some people and I think a big international trade show like this gives the UK suppliers an opportunity to say; 'Here we are, we're open for business.' But on top of that it shows new markets who perhaps haven't done a lot of imports from the UK previously, that we have such a plethora of on trend products to come and look at, but also it gives those buyers an opportunity to meet the suppliers face-to-face, talk to them and start talking to them about real genuine business," she says.

London attracts top chefs from around the world, who come to cook in the capital.

Peruvian chef Robert Ortiz from Lima restaurant in London is demonstrating his skills at the show.

Here he puts together a tiradito dish with raw scallops and spicy Peruvian yellow chillies.

IFE runs from 19-22 March at London's ExCel exhibition centre.

London, UK - 19 March 2017

1. Close of Polish beef steak frying on grill

2. Mid of chef speaking with show visitors

3. Close of steak being turned

4. Mid of chef serving visitors steak

5. Close of cooked steak

6. Wide of Turkish kebab

7. Close of kebab being shaved

8. Close of kebab cooking

9. Close of giant Spanish onion being placed on top of can

10. Various of Palestinian stand with dates

11. Close of bowl of seaweed salad from China

12. Various of man eating seaweed salad

13. Low shot of Callum MacInnes cutting Orkney smoked cheese

14. Close of cheese being cut

15. Close of Scottish flag of St Andrew

16. SOUNDBITE (English) Callum MacInnes, Founder of Island Smokery:

"It (Brexit and a second Scottish vote on independence) is alarming because we've no idea. Basically it's just more turmoil. I mean, you have turmoil in a political situation, when people are uncertain, people don't spend, they always wait to see. So between another referendum and Brexit we're really between a rock and a hard place at the minute because nobody knows how it's going to pan out."

17. Mid of MacInnes taking cheese from fridge

18. Close of smoked cheese being cut

19. Mid of MacInnes cutting cheese

20. SOUNDBITE (English) Callum MacInnes, Founder of Island Smokery:

"It was specialist for a long time, it was maybe too expensive for the man on the street but because of the way the pound and the dollar has gone, it's now accessible to everyone."

21. Close tilt down of Kirkjuvagr gin from Orkney, Scotland

22. Mid of Stephen Kemp of Kirkjuvagr talking with visitors

23. Close tilt up of show visitor sampling gin

24. Close of tap filling glass with gin

25. Various of Stephen Kemp drinking gin

26. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen Kemp, Director of Orkney Distilling Ltd.:

"I think Brexit doesn't necessarily spell a lot that's good right now, not for us, not out on the periphery of Britain in the north. We very much rely on the British market, we rely also on being able to use Britain as a springboard to go to other markets round the world."

27. Close of jar containing Angelica root - a key ingredient in gin

28. Close of Angelica in hand

29. SOUNDBITE (English) Stephen Kemp, Director of Orkney Distilling Ltd.:

"It's sad to think that small producers like us I think will be penalised because there's been no indication of how the support mechanism might work for the industries and for young companies like us."

30. Mid pan right of sign reading: (Welsh/English) "Cymru/Wales"

31. Various of chef at the Celtic Pie Co. slicing steak and ale pie

32. Wide of Jessica Lea-Wilson from Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.

33. Close of Lea-Wilson

34. Close of bowl of sea salt

35. Mid of Lea-Wilson pouring salt into her hand

36. Close of salt in her hand

37. SOUNDBITE (English) Jessica Lea-Wilson, Brand Manager, Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.:

"The protected designation of origin, this little symbol here, protected food names like Champagne or Parma ham or Melton Mowbray pork pies, this legislation is in place to protect our brands, make sure that they're not imitated and we're not quite sure what's going to happen when we leave the EU when it comes to that and that's really important to our business. So we're trying to highlight that and bring it to the government's attention."

38. Extreme close of salt crystals in hand

39. SOUNDBITE (English) Jessica Lea-Wilson, Brand Manager, Halen Mon Anglesey Sea Salt co.:

"We already have a growing market in the US and we're trying to see it as a positive thing that it might grow and that might be an opportunity for us, especially in terms of currency rates at the moment it's quite an attractive option for a lot of US buyers."

40. Various setup shots of event director Soraya Gadelrab speaking to exhibitor

41. SOUNDBITE (English) Soraya Gadelrab, Show Director, the International Food and Drink Event:

"At the moment trading conditions are uncertain for some people and I think a big international trade show like this gives the UK suppliers an opportunity to say; 'Here we are, we're open for business.' But on top of that it shows new markets who perhaps haven't done a lot of imports from the UK previously, that we have such a plethora of on trend products to come and look at, but also it gives those buyers an opportunity to meet the suppliers face-to-face, talk to them and start talking about real genuine business."

42. Various of Robert Ortiz, chef from Lima restaurant in London, demonstrating Peruvian cooking onstage

LEADIN

Food poverty has been rising in the UK, in the wake of years of economic austerity.

Now the Conservative government has called a snap-election on June 8, increasing uncertainty about future government policies.

Community activists in London are providing free meals and a food-sharing fridge to help low-income residents and reduce food waste.

STORYLINE

Cranberry and walnut cakes sell for a couple of pounds (2.5 USD) at the Ritzy Cinema cafe in Brixton, south London.

But many are often thrown away once they've reached their best before dates, contributing to food waste in the local community.

That's despite the fact that they are still perfectly good to eat and there are plenty of mouths that would want them.

But there's a new community effort to hold back the tide of discarded processed and fresh goods.

A group of 25 food activists people came up with the idea of starting a People's Fridge, in a shared workspace for start-ups, small businesses and social entrepreneurs, called Impact Hub Brixton.

The People's Fridge is a public fridge where local businesses and residents can leave spare, edible food for others.

And so employees at the Ritzy Cinema now bring their cafe's surplus cakes for people in the community to have for free, rather than sending it to landfill.

"We heard about it, a staff member had come down and heard about the project and it just seemed like a great idea," says Sarah Cook, the Ritzy Cinema's Marketing Manager.

"Businesses like ours, we waste a lot of food off, to then donate it to people in need and help support the community in Brixton, which we are a big part of, is kind of important to us."

Organisers held a crowdfunding campaign to get the fridge project started, raising more than £2,000 (2,556 USD).

Volunteers run the fridge to cut food waste, encourage food sharing and help tackle food poverty.

One of the co-founders, Rebecca Trevalyan, says after a couple of months of the fridge being open there's brisk activity.

"We're seeing lots of donations coming into the fridge, it has been certainly full over the last couple of weeks," Trevalyan says.

According to the founders, food waste is a big issue in the UK valued at around £17 billion (21bn USD) each year, with restaurants throwing away 900,000 tonnes of food annually.

"In terms of demand for it, and need for food, we know that increasing numbers of people are turning to food banks, unfortunately, and we know that food banks don't currently offer fresh food," Trevalyan says.

"There is therefore a gap for the fridge in providing that fresh source of food, but also being a smart way to deal with food surplus."

Trevalyan adds that it is not only the very poor who are in need of help.

"There are lots of people who are in work who are receiving an income but who still can't afford the rising costs of food and who really benefit from such initiatives.

"Here, from my experience, it certainly feels like there is demand and the demand is rising."

The fridge appears to be mutually beneficial.

"Food we've put on the shelves, or had put on the shelves is generally leaving the shelves within 36 hours of it being there," Trevalyan says.

The founders were inspired by similar fridges in Spain, Germany, and India as well as Somerset and Derbyshire in the UK. But this is the first time the concept has been brought to London.

They know that the fridge will not end the issue of food poverty, but it is one of a number of methods which can be used to combat the problem.

This is as UK welfare benefits have been cut over recent years.

According to the Trussell Trust, that runs food banks across the UK, it distributed more than 519,000 three-day emergency food supplies to people in crisis from April to September 2016. That's up from about 113,000 such parcels for the same period in 2012.

It says the primary reasons for food bank referral are benefit changes and delays and low incomes, issues some say are at risk further from a potentially weakened UK economy post Brexit.

Now that a general election in the UK has been called for 8 June, uncertainty is rife.

One organisation offering free meals in 34 locations across the country, has already seen greater pressure on its services in recent years.

"About a year and a half ago, a local drop in centre for elderly people closed down. It used to serve a hot meal everyday for people over the age of 50," says Alex Cameron, a volunteer at the charity Food Cycle in London's Marylebone.

"And with the closure of that, lots of people were left without a central place to come and meet. It was really damaging to the community actually,"

Food Cycle aims to relieve food poverty and provide a community for people to be a part of. It takes food surplus donations, primarily from supermarkets, and cooks meals for people to attend.

Since the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union in June 2016, the country has already seen price rises in imported food products, as the British sterling has fallen in value. Food prices are expected to grow by between 5 percent and 8 percent in 2017, according to the Food and Drink Federation.

Cameron says she has seen an impact already: "Well, I have to admit I've noticed that the price of the butter that we buy goes up.

"So as a charity we're going to have to start spending more on the extra food that we buy to compliment the food that's surplus.

"I also think that it will have a knock-on effect when basic ingredients and foods go up in price. These are the people that are most affected by that."

One analyst says further inflation and economic instability as the Brexit process completes could increase the already record number of people using free food sources.

"I think Brexit is going to have a negative impact on incomes across the whole spectrum, high-income earners and low-income earners. But the difference is that low-income earners have less room for manoeuvre," says Sarah Boumphrey, Director of Economies and Consumers at the market researchers Euromonitor.

The team behind the People's Fridge think that, if their project is successful, they can help others set up community fridges across the UK.

And, although they may not want it, conditions may be right for just that.

London, UK - 12 April 2017

1. Various two employees of the Ritzy Cinema in Brixton, delivering cakes to the People's Fridge

2. Can of soup and box of cranberry and walnut cakes in the People's Fridge

3. Tilt down fridge

4. Rack focus of sign on fridge reading (English) "I help cut food waste"

5. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Cook, Marketing Manager, Ritzy Cinema:

"We heard about it, a staff member had come down and heard about the project and it just seemed like a great idea. Businesses like ours, we waste a lot of food off, to then donate it to people who are in need and help support the community in Brixton, which we are a big part of, is kind of important to us."

6. Pan right of street in Brixton to exterior of Ritzy Cinema

7. Various of people in the Ritzy Cinema bar and cafe eating and drinking

8. Various of person taking food from the People's Fridge

9. Set up shot of Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge

10. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"Food we've put on the shelves, or we've had put on the shelves is generally leaving the shelves within 36 hours of it being there."

11. Various of onions and greens in the fridge

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"We're seeing lots of donations coming into the fridge, it has been certainly full over the last couple of weeks. In terms of demand for it, and need for food, we know that increasing numbers of people are turning to food banks unfortunately and we know that food banks don't currently offer fresh food. There is therefore a gap for the fridge in providing that fresh source of food, but also being a smart way to deal with food surplus."

13. People walking past fridge

14. Food items in the fridge

15. SOUNDBITE (English) Rebecca Trevalyan, co-founder of the People's Fridge:

"There are lots of people who are in work who are receiving an income, but who still can't afford the rising costs of food and who really benefit from such initiatives. Here, from my experience, it certainly feels like there is demand and the demand is rising."

16. Various of people eating at a dinner held by Food Cycle in a church in Marylebone

17. Maggie at the table with other diners

18. Maggie in front of a bowl of food

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Maggie (No last name given), Marylebone resident

"Oh, it helps you a lot really. If you are only on your pension. But yes, very, very good. It's good all round and they're lovely people here."

20. Volunteers preparing food in the kitchen

21. Volunteer Alex Cameron serving diners

22. SOUNDBITE (English) Alex Cameron, volunteer:

"About a year and a half ago, a local drop in centre for elderly people closed down. It used to serve a hot meal everyday for people over the age of 50. And with the closure of that lots of people were left without a central place to come and meet. It was really damaging to the community actually."

23. Volunteer preparing food in the kitchen

24. SOUNDBITE (English) Alex Cameron, volunteer:

"Well, I have to admit I've noticed that the price of the butter that we buy goes up. So as a charity we're going to have to start spending more on the extra food that we buy to compliment the food that's surplus. I also think that it will have a knock-on effect when basic ingredients and foods go up in price, these are the people that are most affected by that."

25. Various of woman eating

26. Set up shot of Sarah Boumphrey, Director, Economies and Consumers for market researchers Euromonitor

27. SOUNDBITE (English) Sarah Boumphrey, Director, Economies and Consumers for Euromonitor:

"I think Brexit is going to have a negative impact on incomes across the whole spectrum, high-income earners and low-income earners. But the difference is that low-income earners have less room for manoeuvre. They can't direct their spending elsewhere. They can't save less to help with higher food prices. So they have less of a security net."

28. A diner at Food Cycle

29. An empty bowl

30. Diners at Food Cycle

31. Various of a man taking food from the People's Fridge