The biennial Cheese Days festival originally scheduled for 2020 has been postponed – again.

In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, the decision was made to postpone the 2020 Cheese Days until 2021. With the pandemic still grappling the region, nation and world, festival organizers decided to cancel this year’s event, which was slated for the third weekend in September.

“When the pandemic cancelled last year’s festival, the hope was that Cheese Days could confidently begin planning early this year to hold ‘Cheese Days 2020 in 2021’. Unfortunately, there are too many unknowns at this time and Cheese Days will not be held until 2022,” the Cheese Days organization stated in a Facebook post just before 10:30 a.m. March 17, 2021. “Various elements are critical to the success of the Cheese Days festival: corporate sponsorship, volunteerism, community support, and participation by vendors. As of today, there is no guarantee that all elements will be fully engaged. All are required to build the solid foundation necessary to put on an event of this size and scope. At this time, it is impossible to plan and coordinate without that foundation.”

The Cheese Days board felt it would be irresponsible to the financial future of the festival to take a chance on making such a significant financial investment for the 2021 event.

“It is vital to know, today, that sponsors will feel comfortable having their names associated with a large scale event this year, that hundreds of volunteers will step forward to assist with everything from beer sales to garbage collection, that the necessary city permits can be obtained with no chance of being rescinded, and that food vendors will be on board to serve large crowds,” the statement continued.

The board is committed to making sure all attendees have a successful experience, and that festival-goers expect a weekend of family fun, Swiss entertainment, agricultural education, a large parade and deep fried cheese curds.

“A Cheese Days festival without all of those pieces firmly in place would not ring true to expectations by attendees or organizers,” the post said.

The next Cheese Days festival is scheduled for September 16-18, 2022.