EXCLUSIVE - Koonya Garlic Festival to return in 2026

The Koonya Garlic Festival will be held next year on February 28, despite organisers initially cancelling the event due to a lack of volunteers.

It was the reason the festival did not take place in 2024, and despite this year’s event attracting around 3500 to the Koonya Hall grounds at Nubenna, the low number of people willing to put on the garlic celebration led to the cancellation announcement a few weeks ago.

“We didn’t have enough volunteers because on the Tasman Peninsula, we have an aging demographic”, Koonya Garlic Festival President Amanada Quealy said.

“We have people who volunteer in lots of different groups and clubs, so we have a small pool of people that we rely on in the area to do that.

“But people can obviously get burnt out and fatigued.”

Ms Quealy began her tenure as president in late August, around the time the 2026 festival was at risk of cancellation.

She said that while there was “goodwill in terms of people wanting the Koonya Garlic Festival to go ahead”, concerns around volunteer numbers lingered.

“I basically called everybody who was involved last year and even spoke to the people who started the festival.

“I did all kinds of research and reconnaissance, and the overwhelming response was that they would get involved and volunteer their time again.”

Ms Quealy said more than a dozen people were willing to take on key responsibilities in the organising and running of the garlic festival.

“Having spoken to all of those volunteers, it seemed to me that it was possible to do the event and there was certainly a huge amount of support.

“People said they would be very disappointed if the full festival didn’t go ahead.

“The festival has been going for 10 years, and we really want to keep the momentum and build the brand.”

Despite the success of last year’s event and the positive feedback from patrons, Ms Quealy said there was “always room for improvement” and wanted to implement some new elements to the 2026 festival.

“But we really want to keep it about the growers.

“We’re clear about our purpose and philosophy – which is about showcasing local produce, food, wine and music.

“Sustainability is probably an area that we will grow more in terms of our focus.”

Ms Quealy said she was keen to engage with other volunteer organisations, such as Rural Youth, to attract younger people to help out and enjoy the festival.