Food Fair’s History

In the past, we held our International Food Fair each year on the third Saturday in November. It started back in the mid-60s with a very humble beginning of two tables selling toys and cakes. In 1968 we joined forces with the French community in the Edith Stein College in The Hague. After several years the French decided to have their own Food Fair. In the late 70s the Food Fair moved to the Aloysius College and remained until 2002. The College was undergoing renovations and as our volunteers increased in numbers and  activities, it was time to move on. We were made very welcome at the François Vatelschool in Mariahoeve from 2003 until 2019.

The time during the Covid pandemic was an opportunity to rethink the Food Fair format that had been in place for many years. From 2022 the Food Fair takes place on a Saturday in the summer, usually in June. The premises around the church play host to the many food stalls from different countries and attracts parishioners, and the people of the Bezuidenhout neighbourhood for a day of fun and camaraderie.

The Food Fair is a wonderful community event and brings people of all nationalities together, serving delicious food and giving their time, knowing that money raised goes to support projects of the poor and needy throughout the world, including The Netherlands. There is entertainment during the day and an area for various activities for the children.

The  International Food Fair is a living example of ‘The colours of a Rembrandt’ by way of over 50 wonderful years of mixing food, fun, volunteers and outreach.

Since Food Fair started, we have raised over Euros 300,000 for various projects all over the world and here in the Netherlands as well.

See here more information on the projects that benefitted from Food Fair 2023.

Our next Food Fair is planned for June 2025. Watch this space for more information.