Colmore Food Festival postponed for 2020

In light of the current COVID-19 lockdown and social distancing rules, organisers of Birmingham’s biggest free-entry food and drink festival have taken the decision to postpone this year’s event.

Colmore Food Festival  was set to take place Friday 3 and Saturday  4 July in Centenary Square, however after careful consideration by organisers Colmore BID, it was deemed best to postpone the event for 2020 rather than reschedule for later in the year.

Colmore Food Festival is the annual celebration of Colmore Business District restaurants, bars, cafes and hotels. It attracts more than 30,000 visitors each year and is hosted by Colmore Business Improvement District (BID). In 2020, the festival was set to celebrate its 10^th anniversary, with 35 venues taking part.

Michele Wilby, CEO of Colmore BID, said “Since the government’s ban on mass gatherings back in March, we have been monitoring the situation with regard to the current COVID-19 pandemic and what action to take. While our initial instinct was to postpone till later in the year, with a phased return to business likely and additional restrictions on hospitality businesses, we felt the best course of action was in fact to cancel this year’s event. The safety and well-being of both visitors and exhibitors is at the heart of our decision.

“Colmore Food Festival has continued to grow in popularity, with over 30,000 people attending the 2019 event. While, like many we are saddened that this year’s festival has been cancelled, we will be back next year bigger and better than ever. In the meantime, we will continue to support those affected by the lockdown by any means we can. Our business support hub is being updated daily and the BID team remain at hand to offer advice and signposting to other resources.”