Due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Royal Agricultural Winter Fair has been cancelled. The Royal’s Board of Directors made the difficult but unanimous decision to cancel the Fair, originally scheduled for Nov. 6-15 at Exhibition Place in Toronto.
“Over the past several months, we’ve all experienced an unprecedented disruption to our daily lives and are redefining how we live, work and play. Ultimately, our decision is grounded in our commitment to help ensure the health and well-being of our community at large,” Charlie Johnstone, CEO of The Royal, said in a statement.
The Royal Agricultural Winter Fair is the largest combined indoor agricultural fair and international equestrian competition in the world. Each year, The Royal brings together hundreds of competitors, thousands of animals and hundreds of thousands of guests to celebrate the best in agriculture, local food and equestrian competition. During its storied history, The Royal has been cancelled on only one other occasion: during World War II.
The Royal’s Agricultural Food Competitions will still take place in 2020, and virtual programming is currently being explored for this fall. More details regarding this will be released soon at royalfair.org.
