Noosa Italian Food and Vino Festival reveals reason for shock cancellation

The organiser and high-end chef behind Noosa’s Italian food festival has opened up on this year’s shock cancellation and his disappointment in a key tourism body.

A major cost blowout for a much-loved Noosa Italian food festival has been revealed as the reason for the event’s shock cancellation as the organisers look for additional support.

Andrea and Kerri Ravezzani, the husband and wife team behind the Noosa Italian Food and Vino Festival, announced the three-day event would not be happening this year due to “financial constraints and limited resources”.

In 2022, the festival hosted a number of Italian-inspired events at Noosa Woods, including an opening party, four-course long lunch and cooking master classes, which all sold out.

More than 1500 people attended, with a further 260 booking a seat at the long lunch.

Mr Ravezzani, who also owns the Noosa Waterfront restaurant, said the costs calculated to cover the festival for 2023 had risen by 30 per cent on the previous year.

“The biggest issue was the sponsorship situation, we have many sponsors who agreed to the same terms and conditions as last year but when we have gone to check all the costs, infrastructure and everything, it had all gone up by at least 30 per cent,” Mr Ravezzani said.

“At the end of the day with the sponsors it was not enough, the money was too tight.”

Andrea and Kerri Ravezzani announced the shock cancellation of the Italian festival in July.

Mr Ravezzani said a major influence over the festival’s future was the support of local governments and Tourism Noosa.

“We have no support from Tourism Noosa because it is a private event, we have no support even though we bring tourists to Noosa,” Mr Ravezzani said.

“The community supports us big time anyway, just to come to the festival is a big support, it is more what the council and the government can do to support us.”

Scenes from the Noosa Italian Food and Vino Festival in 2022.

Tourism Noosa has been contacted for comment on the support offered to private events such as the festival but has not responded.

Mr Ravezzani said they were already planning next year’s festival, albeit with some changes to hopefully ensure the event was financially viable.

“We would love to have more support from them (Tourism Noosa), it is not just about the money, they could help us do advertising and promote the festival,” he said.

“That would help us become more sustainable and get more sponsors, just with visibility.”