COVID in WA: Truffle Kerfuffle 2022 cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions and lack of skilled workers

The South West has lost another major tourism event after it was announced the 2022 Truffle Kerfuffle would not go ahead due to the State Government’s COVID-19 restrictions. The popular event, held annually in Manjimup, attracts thousands of visitors to the Lower South West town as they sample some of the finest wines and foods on offer in WA. The Truffle Kerfuffle is a weekend-long festival which sees multiple events take place including internationally-acclaimed chefs hosting cooking tutorials, local producers showcasing their best food and wine and organised tours which highlight the growing agri-tourism industry in Manjimup. What would have been the 11th year for the gourmet event was officially cancelled on Thursday after the Truffle Kerfuffle committee decided the impact COVID-19 restrictions has had and would continue to have on the festival made it too difficult to host. Truffle Kerfuffle Incorporated president Jeremy Beissel said the COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the State Government prevented the festival from going ahead, particularly the rules governing social distancing which stipulate event-goers must try to maintain a 2sqm distance from each other. “As far as COVID goes, we could not go ahead under any circumstances with mandates,” he said. “It is just too hard with an event like that, obviously it is a middle-of-winter event in Manjimup so it is undercover, there are a lot of people huddling together and it is just not conjusive to good COVID practice. “So unless all those mandates were relaxed we would not have been able to go ahead.” Mr Beissel said the danger of going ahead meant the festival could have resulted in multiple staff and volunteers contracting the virus and needing to isolate or the 2022 Truffle Kerfuffle becoming a super-spreader event. He said another major reason for cancelling the event was because the Truffle Kerfuffle needed big amounts of infrastructure to be built on site and a combination of a lack of skilled workers and the rising cost of labour meant it quickly became unfeasible. “We are a very infrastructure-heavy event, with ours we have to bring it all in and that requires a big workforce and the way that situation is going with a lack of workers and then the cost of actually getting them and even the cost of infrastructure we require at the event is just going up every day,” he said. “When you are trying to budget for a not-for-profit around that situation it is near on impossible and as soon as you lose control of your budget it is very dangerous.” Mr Beissel said if the event had gone ahead and had sustained a “great” loss there was a danger the Truffle Kerfuffle festival would fold and cease to operate. He said the festival would normally bring in between $2 million and $3 million a year for the local economy and was a great boon for local farmers. Mr Beissel said he wanted to “wholeheartedly” thank the local producers, volunteers on the committee and Tourism WA for their support and the effort they put in to making the Truffle Kerfuffle a major South West tourism event. He said he hoped after this year’s cancellation, the community would “rally” and become even more supportive of Truffle Kerfuffle 2023.