Strawberry Fields have been forced to cancel their 2020 event.
For the first time in 12 years, Strawberry Fields will not be welcoming thousands of patrons to its home venue on the banks of the Murray River in Tocumwal, NSW.The festival has confirmed that due to COVID-19, it is not planning to hold any events until 2021 at the earliest.
Festival Director Tara Medina said the decision was made primarily out of respect for all those who make the event happen.
"After much discussion, we believe this is in the best interests of our fans, our staff, the local community and all the emergency services who support this event.
"Although we hope the current situation in Victoria improves dramatically in coming months, at the moment it feels inappropriate to consider bringing thousands of people to the region from primarily Melbourne and Sydney.
"We want to respect the space, health and wellbeing of the Berrigan Shire, as well as the time of local emergency services who are already so busy fighting the pandemic day to day.
"Normally our event is announced, and tickets sold out by this time of year. We really waited until the eleventh hour to see if we could work something out – even with a drastically reduced capacity – but we have to come to terms with the reality that it will not be possible until 2021.
"Despite the heartbreak, we are seeing this as an important time to reset. Our industry is called 'creative' for a reason – if there is anyone who will look for ways to adapt and move forward so that we can continue to inspire and share culture, it's us."
