Body & Soul
vendor catering Ireland.
Body & Soul is Ireland's leading wellness, music + arts festival, held mid-June each year at Ballinlough Castle in County Westmeath. Distinct from the bigger commercial weekends (Electric Picnic, Forbidden Fruit), Body & Soul curates vendors heavily around ethical sourcing, vegetarian/vegan menus, plant-based options, organic ingredients, and zero-waste packaging. Pitch competition is moderate but the curation bar is high — operators without a clear story on sourcing + sustainability rarely win pitches.
Festival facts
- Venue
- Ballinlough Castle, Clonmellon, Co. Westmeath
- County
- Westmeath
- Typical dates
- Mid-June (3 days, Friday–Sunday) — Father's Day weekend
- Attendance
- ~12,000 capacity (boutique / wellness-led festival)
- Operator
- Body & Soul Festival Ltd (independent)
- Application window
- November–February for the following summer
- Pitch fees
- €600 – €2,000 + ethical sourcing premium
- Official site
- www.bodyandsoul.ie ↗
Application + curation
Applications open via bodyandsoul.ie usually in November. Festival organisers curate vendors heavily — they want a healthy mix across vegetarian/vegan/plant-based + locally-sourced + organic + traditional Irish + global street food. Operators are asked to submit a sourcing manifesto alongside menu + photos. Compostable packaging (Vegware / BioPak / Stalkmarket — fully TUV-Austria HOME certified) is non-negotiable. Pitch fees include a sliding ethical-sourcing premium for operators not yet meeting the standard.
Pitch fees + footprint
Body & Soul vendor fees range €600–€2,000 for the weekend depending on pitch location + footprint. Smaller plant-based + coffee-trailer pitches €600-€1,200; larger food-trailer fees €1,200-€2,000. Power: some pitches include shared on-site power; most vendors bring their own silent diesel generator. Water from shared taps; potable water supply provided onsite. Fewer pitches than Electric Picnic so individual sales volume per vendor is typically higher despite the smaller crowd.
Sourcing + sustainability requirements
Body & Soul publishes a vendor sourcing standard: ≥70% Irish-sourced ingredients, organic + free-range where possible, fully compostable packaging (cups, lids, plates, cutlery, sauce sachets), zero single-use plastic, and a documented food-waste plan (food bank / livestock / composting). The festival audits vendors during the weekend; non-compliance = removal mid-weekend with no refund. Coffee trailers should run reusable-cup-discount programmes (~€0.50 off per drink with own cup) and have plant-milk options (Oatly Barista is the trade default).
Crowd profile + sales pattern
Body & Soul attendees are typically older + higher-spending than Electric Picnic — 30s/40s wellness-curious crowd with disposable income. Sales pattern: coffee + breakfast roll spike Saturday + Sunday morning (8-11am), lunch mostly noon-3pm, dinner 5-8pm, then small late-night demand. Plant-based + Asian / Middle Eastern street food consistently outperform meat-heavy menus at this festival. Average ticket prices €8-€14 for hot food, €4-€6 for coffee.
Costs vs revenue benchmarks
A well-positioned plant-based or specialty-coffee trailer at Body & Soul reports gross weekend revenue of €5,000-€15,000 against costs of ~€1,800-€4,000 (pitch + diesel + staff + stock + insurance + compostable packaging premium). Net margin 35-50% for established ethical-sourcing operators. The compostable-packaging requirement adds ~30% to packaging COGS — factor that into menu pricing.
Travel + accommodation logistics
Ballinlough Castle sits on the N52 between Kells and Mullingar — Westmeath. From Dublin: M3 north then N52 west, ~90 minutes. From Cork / Limerick: M7 + M6 + N52 east, ~3-4 hours with the trailer. Vendor camping is permitted onsite at no additional cost; most established operators bring a small crew caravan or pop-up tent + air mattress arrangement next to the trailer. Hotels in Kells, Mullingar, and Trim are 15-25 minutes drive — book by April for the June weekend, family-friendly dates around Father's Day make rooms compete with general attendee bookings. Onsite power for vendor camping is shared (limited 13A hookups); bring a 12V battery setup for personal devices.
Vendor neighbour map + community
Body & Soul's vendor area is curated as much for community feel as for footfall — adjacent pitches are typically chosen so menus + price points complement rather than compete (e.g. a vegan burrito trailer next to a plant-based gelato cart, not next to a competing burrito vendor). The "Wonderland" main vendor zone sees the heaviest foot traffic 12pm-9pm; the "Mindfield" wellness area attracts a quieter, brunch-skewed crowd 8am-3pm; the after-hours pitches near Walden Tent run 9pm-2am with strong demand for warm comfort food. Pick your zone based on menu type — coffee + breakfast does best in Mindfield, dinner + late-night does best in Wonderland or Walden.
Frequently asked questions
When does the Body & Soul vendor application window open?
Applications open in November via bodyandsoul.ie. The festival curates vendors heavily — operators without a clear sourcing/sustainability story rarely win pitches.
What sustainability standards does Body & Soul require from vendors?
Compostable packaging only (Vegware / BioPak / Stalkmarket TUV-Austria HOME-certified), zero single-use plastic, ≥70% Irish-sourced ingredients where possible, and a documented food-waste plan. Festival audits vendors during the weekend.
How much does a Body & Soul pitch cost?
Vendor fees range €600-€2,000 for the weekend. Smaller plant-based and coffee-trailer pitches €600-€1,200; larger food-trailer pitches €1,200-€2,000.
What menu types perform best at Body & Soul?
Plant-based, vegetarian, Asian and Middle Eastern street food consistently outperform meat-heavy menus. The crowd is wellness-curious 30s/40s, higher disposable income than typical festivals.
Other Irish festivals
Need festival-grade trailer or equipment?
Browse Irish suppliers — silent diesel generators, refrigeration, fryers, coffee equipment + finished food trailers built for the Irish festival circuit.