Home Grown in Ireland

Keeping Irish Traditions Alive

Creamy Irish butter churned from fresh milk using wooden paddles and flavored with salt from the sea. Brilliant craftspeople finding a contemporary place for old-school blacksmithing. Native Irish cows standing only 38 inches tall, yet bred as milk producers and beef cattle. And… at last, a closer look at what really goes into making fresh blood pudding. These are a few topics covered by Ella McSweeney in the Home Grown project.

Home Grown brings traditions in Irish food and farming to radio, online video and social media. The concept centers around a weekly feature on RTE Radio 1′s Pat Kenny Show, but between the episodes, fans are invited to extend the experience on Facebook and Twitter where Ella and the Home Grown community post photos, videos and share their thoughts about a variety of traditional skills.

Building a Home Grown Ireland Community

Since I’m someone interested in “real” Irish traditions in contemporary Ireland, I find the radio segments fascinating and superbly produced. Meanwhile, the casual nature of the videos and photos on Facebook are doing their part to connect people and celebrate the individuals who are keeping traditions alive. Fans are also invited to contribute by sharing their stories in nostalgic food and farming from around Ireland.

Get in touch with Ella by email homegrown@ireland.com or join the HomeGrownIreland Facebook page to share your memories, recipes, photographs and stories. Be sure to scroll through the history on the Facebook page to see all the content (links, audio, video, discussions), and if you enjoy it, click the “LIKE” button at the top of the page.

TWITTER: www.twitter.com/rtehomegrown
AUDIOBOO: www.audioboo.com/homegrown
FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/pages/Home-Grown-Ireland/104399489615609?v=wall&ref=ts

Photo credit: Dex Info – www.dex-info.net/origart-wilson1918_106.htm