Local food producers have expressed their dismay at the shock cancellation of this year’s Isle of Man Food and Drink Festival.

An urgent question has been tabled for this week’s House of Keys sitting about the cancellation of the event.

The annual festival, which has been held for 15 years, was due to take place over the weekend of September 14 and 15 in the Villa Marina Gardens.

But in an email sent out to would-be festival participants on Thursday, the Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture said: ‘After careful consideration, we have chosen not to proceed with the festival this year.’

The organisers said there are other ways to promote local produce that would have more impact.

DEFA acknowledged that the news may come as a ‘disappointment given the festival's established presence in the annual events calendar’. Nina Cooper, of Chocolates of Man, said local producers she had spoken to were ‘unhappy, very upset and disappointed’ by the decision to cancel the event and insisted there had been no consultation.

She said: ‘I’ve lost a minimum of £3,000 of sales. I make between £3,000 and £5,000 at the festival.

‘It’s our biggest hit along with Christmas and Easter. It’s been going 15 years - why break something that’s not broken?’

Nina says she starts making chocolate a few days before the festival and makes between 100 and 140 kilos for the event.

‘That’s a lot of chocolate,’ she said.

Nina said applications forms are normally sent out in April and when she didn’t receive one she emailed the organisers asking why. She was told it was still in planning.

She said producers will have already started buying stock including ingredients and packaging.

And she said the festival was not just about making revenue but showcasing produce, meeting existing and potential customers and developing new ideas for products.

‘The festival is such a big thing. We will be lost without it. It gets us out in the open market, people get to know who we are. There are all the restaurants and hotels looking for suppliers. And it is never too early to take an order for Christmas.’

Asked what the decision said about the government’s commitment to shop local and local producers, she replied: ‘There is no commitment from government - or if there is, I’ve not seen it.’

In an urgent oral question for Tuesday’s Keys sitting, Arbory, Castletown and Malew MHK Jason Moorhouse will ask what factors led to the cancellation, what alternatives will be made available to help producers showcase their produce and make up for the loss in sales.

In its email DEFA said it had ‘become evident through analysis and feedback’ there were other opportunities to enhance the promotion and support of locally produced food.

It said that for this year, the allocated festival budget will now be redirected to ‘further bolster’ the food and drink sector through a number of initiative which it said would aim for a ’more significant impact’.

DEFA said the department would have an increased presence at the Southern Agricultural Show on July 27 and 28 and at the Royal Manx Agricultural Show on August 9 and 10.

It said it is also organising a ‘Meet the Buyer’ event provisionally scheduled for September 23 which it said will provide food businesses with the opportunity to showcase their products to both local and off-island food buyers.

DEFA Minister Clare Barber said there had been significant challenges in the last couple of years which she said highlighted the risk of ‘putting all the eggs in one basket’.

She said the event was almost pulled at the last minute in 2022 following the death of the Queen while inclement weather last year resulted in the festival having only a third of the number of visitors.

Ms Barber said feedback from stallholders and visitors highlighted concerns about accessibility, ticket prices and she said the festival model did not necessarily suit all producers.