Council cutting apron strings on festival Like a child leaving home

Anna Reynolds says council made a tough decision to help Taste flourish

A LOT of dramatic words have been used this week to describe Hobart council’s decision on the next chapter for the Taste of Tasmania.

But contrary to words like “dumped” and “pulled the pin”, the last thing council wants is to see this iconic festival to fade into history.

That’s precisely why we’re making this move now. The longer the Taste stays under local government ownership, the more likely it is to fail in the long-term. That’s not a criticism of the excellent team of City of Hobart staff who have delivered the Taste in the past, nor is it due to any failure of the council in its leadership.

Putting on an event of the size and scope of the Taste is hugely resource-intensive. Local government — by its design — is simply not suited to running a large-scale, multiday, multimillion-dollar festival. No other council in the country owns and operates such an event. We’re proud of what we’ve achieved in the past 31 years. The Taste of Tasmania has grown from a two-day showcase of local produce, comprising just 22 stalls, to become an icon of our city and our state, attracting upwards of 250,000 people.

It has evolved with our city into an event that is the largest of its kind in Australia and would rival any food and wine festival in the world.

The decision to step away from exclusive ownership is a hard one. It followed careful consideration and was made with a heavy heart. The city has invested so much time and resources over three decades into building and nurturing the Taste, which has in turn become so successful that it’s outgrown its roots.

It’s a little bit like raising a child — doing all that you can to help them grow into a strong and independent adult, and then having to muster the strength to let go and let them live their own lives.

We don’t intend to cut ties completely. We expect there will be the chance to play a valuable role as a partner or sponsor, or another meaningful form of support — a more appropriate role for a council in such an event.

We were already starting to move in that direction before COVID-19 stopped everything in its tracks. It had been

known for a long time that it wasn’t sustainable to keep going the way we were. We just needed the catalyst to bring about the change.

If there’s a silver lining to the past 12 months, it’s the perspective we’ve been able to gain around what’s important and the opportunity to reassess how we do things.

The Premier’s comments supporting a “refresh” of the festival concept and a commitment for the state government to work with the council on the transition plan provide confidence that the process we are entering into will be a positive one.

A lot of work has gone into reaching this point.

The Taste team spoke with businesses and stakeholders, who have been part of the festival’s success over many years, and we’ve listened to the feedback.

The overwhelming position was that the Taste should not remain solely in council hands.

While it’s disappointing for everyone, there is also a clear understanding that the council is not in a position to deliver a festival this year, and the time is right for change.

Comment from the tourism and hospitality industries this week validated the decision — the intention was to do the right thing by businesses who rely on its success. We will keep lines of communication open with our business community and Taste stallholders in the next 12 months.

Talks of future partnerships and co-operatives are already happening.

There is an air of excitement and a readiness to explore new opportunities.