The annual Shepparton Albanian Harvest Festival returns next month, with this year being a milestone celebration.
The festival at Shepparton’s Queen’s Gardens promises to be the biggest yet as organisers mark its 25th year.
The event is now one of the most significant community-run events in Greater Shepparton, celebrating food, family, music and Albanian culture.
The festival will be held on Sunday, March 3 from 11am.
Audiences will be greeted with traditional Albanian music, dancing and cuisine.
The festival also boasts a fruit and vegetable market that offers produce available to buy at wholesale prices, most of which is grown in the Goulburn Valley.
The event was developed in Shepparton more than 25 years ago as a way for the Albanian community to celebrate its culture and help Albanian families in the area keep in touch.
A few years ago, the organising committee moved the festival to a more central location, and the cultural mix of people attending has broadened since then.
“Our committee would very much like to encourage a more diverse crowd to come along and help us celebrate our culture by sharing our entertainment, food and traditions,” Shepparton Albanian Society president Reg Qemal said.
“The ongoing success of local cultural events such as Converge and the St Georges Road Food Festival demonstrates that there is a keen interest in people travelling to Shepparton to experience a multicultural event.”
For more information, visit sheppartonalbaniansociety.org