Magnolia Blossom Festival, steak cook-off event canceled

BANNER-NEWS

MAGNOLIA — The 2020 Magnolia Blossom Festival and World Championship Steak Cook-Off has been canceled, according to an announcement by its board of directors.

The decision to cancel the May 15-16 event was made during an April 8 meeting. The move was made because of coronavirus concerns and potential health risks to the town and festival attendees.

“The Board does not want to put our community, vendors, volunteers, and cookers at any health risk,” the statement read.

The cancellation marks the first time in the festival’s 31 years that the event won’t take place. The Blossom Festival’s World Championship Steak Cook-Off, which began in the festival’s second year in 1990, routinely draws around 100 grilling teams from around the South, with crews making the weekend trip from Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana and other states as far away as Georgia and North Carolina in recent years.

The cook-off has been featured multiple times on Food Network and the Travel Channel, with recent winners earning as much as $4,000.

The festival is traditionally held on the third weekend of May and is attended by thousands. It also features dozens of food and craft vendors, and the annual art show — which began 70 years ago as a sidewalk artist showcase on the Columbia County Square — is another highlight.

The cancellation is the second change to a Columbia County festival in the wake of coronavirus fears. McNeil’s Festival on the Rails, which was previously scheduled for Saturday.

No announcement has been made regarding the status of Emerson’s Purple Hull Pea Festival and World Championship Rotary Tiller Race. The event typically takes place the final weekend in June.