ORGANISERS of the Hereford Indie Food festival are already looking ahead to next year after a successful bank holiday weekend.

The festival was held for the second year in the car park behind The Burger Shop and The Bookshop in Aubrey Street, Hereford.

During the day on Saturday and Sunday 2,500 people came through the gates, with an extra 800 to 1,000 each night, and on Monday 1,500 food and drink lovers attended.

One of the organisers, Dorian Kirk, said: "That would be around 8,000 to 8,500 which is amazing. A lot would be repeat custom but it is still incredible."

An extra day was added to the festival this year and there was more live music, more food and drink stalls and a Makers Market above Roman Glass.

Dorian said: "We have got a bit more work to do next year making more of the whole point of the food festival, which is to get people celebrating the local produce.

"In my opinion, we need to get more and more people to buy local."

The festival worked with Hay Festival this year to host six talks by chefs and food writers, including a talk by Philip Lymbery about animal welfare in farming.

Dorian added: "All the choices we make in the food market or supermarket affects everything from our health to food waste and also the local economy. If you are buying local from good producers and if you are buying organic you are improving wildlife and bees. You can see the effects across all areas of food and across our own lives.

"That is the whole point of doing the food festival originally- buy local because it is not just something cool to do but there is a real reason behind it."

There is the potential next year to have street food stalls in Aubrey Street and create more of a space within the festival area for a stage for food talks and chef demonstrations and strengthen their links with Hay Festival.

Ninety per cent of the food at the festival was from Herefordshire.

There were also DJ sets from Mat Horne and Mystery Jets on the Saturday night and a DJ set from Foals on the Sunday.

The festival is organised by the Rule of Tum team (which runs the Burger Shop and The Bookshop) and includes Dorian, his brother, Edwin, and Jon Stead. Hereford Beer House and the Shack Revolution also worked with the team to put on the festival.