COVID-19 cancellations on P.E.I. creep into November as annual spirits festival scrapped

It was still more than five months away, but officials have made the decision to cancel the P.E.I. Spirits Festival because of the uncertainty around COVID-19.

The festival was scheduled for Nov. 14. It joins a long list of festivals that have been cancelled on P.E.I., but most have not been that farin the future. Showcase P.E.I.,a Music P.E.I. event that invites music festival organizers and others every September to hear Island musicians, also announced Monday it will cancel.

Jamie MacLeod, acting CEO of the P.E.I. Liquor Control Commission, said the festival takes a long time to plan and organizers were uncertain what measures would be in place come November.

For the past four years, the festival has been a chance for Islanders to sample and buy high-end spirits while noshing on local food. It has been held in past years at the Confederation Centre of the Arts.

"The ordering of products from suppliers requires a fair amount of lead time so combined with not knowing if a public gathering would be allowed including if product reps could attend, the event was cancelled," he said in an email to CBC.

He said the decision is in line with other jurisdictions such as New Brunswick, which also cancelled its spirits festival scheduled for November.

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