Bushmills Salmon and Whiskey Festival 'revamp' call
Bushmills Salmon and Whiskey Festival may have become ‘tired’ and in need of a revamp.
That’s according to one DUP councillor at Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council’s Leisure and Development Committee meeting.
Members were presented with the council’s tourism events programme for 2026/27, which include plans to hold the Bushmills Salmon and Whiskey Festival in early October.
A prospective budget of £69,808 has been identified, including £5,000 for expected rises in infrastructure and traffic management costs and £4,500 for “rejuvenation”.
DUP Alderman Aaron Callan said there had been recent discussions between council and one of the delivery partners, Taste Causeway, around “the need to revamp it or refresh it in some way”.
“That’s not going to happen next year potentially, but is that is that something that’s being developed in the background?” Alderman Callan asked.
A council officer conceded that the festival “did fall away post-Covid in terms of quality”.
The officer added: “Then it was kind of reinvigorated with a strong food and drink sector with a lot of artisanal suppliers, small batch beverage, productions, etc.”
“There was the food and the music trail through the town, that was focused on the Sunday, and over the last couple of years they’ve been expanding that to Saturday and Sunday.
“We’re constrained with budget, but the quality of Salmon and Whiskey is going in the right direction.”
Alderman Callan said his takeaway from the recent discussion was that the festival was “tired”, “had run its course”, and needed to be revamped.
The officer replied: “The team will be sitting down months in advance, with the other stakeholders, to do a review of 2025 and then go “how can we improve for 2026?”.
“That process is integral, so that process will happen.”