Canadian cheese festival returns with over 100 vendors this week in Kingston

A cheese festival that highlights the best of the Canadian dairy industry is returning this week after being on pause since 2018.

Over 100 Canadian dairy producers and artisans are gathering for this year’s Great Canadian Cheese festival from across the country, all showcasing their Canadian-made cheeses created using Canadian milk.

2025’s Great Canadian Cheese festival will include tutored cheese tastings with beverage pairings, children’s cheese-making activities, professional development seminars, wine, beer, live entertainment and tours of Fort Henry.

The current executive director of the festival is Patricia McDermott, owner of Agrarian Market in Prince Edward County, where the festival was originally hosted.

“People kept asking when it would return. There has definitely been excitement for its return,” McDermott tells YourCityWithIN.com.

“That’s part of why we moved it to Kingston, to better support the national scope and accommodate the demand of the festival. We wanted to make sure the festival could grow in a way that truly benefits the dairy producers we host.”

Following shifts due to the pandemic, the Great Canadian Cheese Festival is taking place in Kingston at Fort York from May 24 to 25 this year.

“The festival was originally launched in 2012 by Georgs Kolesnikovs, who was passionate about Canadian artisan cheese. Around the same time, I opened a store in Prince Edward County focused on local food and we quickly became friends through our shared commitment to small producers,” says McDermott.

“Last year, I created and launched the Ontario Cheese Festival, and now we’re excited to be reviving the national festival, created by George. The plan is to alternate between the Ontario Cheese Festival and the Great Canadian Cheese Festival going forward each year.”

Kolesnikovs actually stepped back from the festival when it took a pause in 2018, at which point McDemott first approached him about taking on the director role. However, the pandemic had an even longer and more challenging type of pause planned for festivals. Now, after the creation of the Ontario Cheese Festival, McDermott is bringing back the Great Canadian Cheese Festival and is persevering forward.

“The biggest challenge is also the most rewarding: asking people to show up, support local, and understand why that matters. You just keep going, keep learning. For me, it’s about more than cheese, it’s about showing the next generation where their food comes from,” says McDermott.

“I started this wanting to support my local community in Prince Edward County. Over time, it grew into a provincial, then national initiative. We’re watching small dairies get bought out by large corporations, and we want to do our part to support the independent producers who are keeping the craft alive in Canada.”

“You are supporting something from here, rather than far away,” says cheesemaker Shep Ysselstein, co-owner and operator of Gunn’s Hill Artisan Cheese in Woodstock, Ontario.

“Right now, people need to be supporting Canadians because we might end up going through more difficult times in the future and everyone’s individual choices to choose Canadian can really boost the market as a whole.”

According to the Dairy Processors Association of Canada, Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement will result in annual losses of $140 million for the Canadian dairy industry, and other trade agreements will end up losing the industry hundreds of millions of dollars annually, with losses projected to reach into the billions of dollars.

“It’s never been more important to support Canadian products, specifically Canadian cheese in our case, considering all the things that have been happening and the political environment,” says Ysselstein. “There is a large amount of uncertainty right now, and when there is this much uncertainty, it’s hard to know exactly what to expect. It makes life a little more difficult.”

While the plan is to alternate putting on The Great Canadian Cheese Festival and the Ontario Cheese Festival every other year, they’re testing the waters in Kingston for the Canadian fest for now to see if it’s a good fit.

“We only use milk from my family’s dairy farm and we continuously focus on improving our cheese. We are always trying to make our cheese better,” Ysselstein tells YourCityWithIN.com.

“The festival is a great place to remind cheese lovers of our products, introduce new people to our cheeses and trial, introduce new varieties. It is also wonderful to interact with all the other cheese makers. It is very rare a lot of us get to see and chat with one another and this kind of meeting is very special.”

The Ontario Cheese Festival is slated to move to Guelph or Cambridge in the future, which McDermott says will help them “to connect with new communities and expand our reach across the province.”

“We make great cheeses here in Canada,” said Ysselstein. “There might be a perception that great cheeses come from Europe, but I think that can be quickly shown to not necessarily be true when people try the stuff we make here.”

“To everyone coming out, thank you. Supporting small businesses is what keeps our economy strong. These producers are the backbone of our food system, and we’re proud to celebrate them,” says McDermott.

“The goal was, and still is, to raise awareness about Canadian artisan cheese. Despite the incredible talent and quality we have in this country, many Canadians don’t know what’s being produced in their own backyard. This festival is about shining a spotlight on that, and celebrating the producers who make it possible.”