Here are 5 surprising facts about #WelshFoodHistory (and several more on Thursday at @wrffc20):

1. The Welsh food economy has historically been both about domestic consumption - and export-led. The #drovers and the pickled #oysters of Tenby being just two early-modern examples.

2. Welsh food is not _just_ Welsh peasant food. The food of the many wealthy landed estates is part of our heritage - whatever we think of that legacy. (I touch on these points here: https://carwyngraves.com/on-welsh-food-stories/)

3. Orchards. Now a rare sight in the Welsh landscape, these were an important part of the rural economy until the mid-20th century - until they were decimated. We're talking about a reduction of cc 98% in orchard land in less than a century.

4. Varied. There's a historiography that isn't limited to Wales which says that pre-modern food was monotonous and boring. In reality, people made use of what was available to them - which meant people ate and drank many things which we no longer do: https://carwyngraves.com/undonog-oedd-bwyd-y-cymry/

5. Sustainable. Many of the technologies and methods used were zero-carbon, wildlife-friendly, employment-providing. Think watermills, scythes, transhumance.
Crucially, this was farming that didn't undermine the planet's carrying capacity - and that we could now improve on.