Peterborough will be hosting the Great Canadian Cheese Festival, Canada’s largest celebration of cheese, this June.
The 2026 festival will take place at the Morrow Building beside the Peterborough Memorial Centre on Saturday, June 13 and Sunday, June 14, running from 9 a.m. to- 5 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.
After an eight-year hiatus, the reinvented festival returned last May and was hosted at Fort Henry in Kingston.
“The response in our first year was overwhelming,” said Patricia McDermott, owner of Agrarian Market in Prince Edward County and the executive director of the festival, in a media release. “Guests were hungry for discovery, and our makers delivered. We listened, we learned, and we’re thrilled to expand the experience even further in 2026.”
Last year’s festival hosted over 100 Canadian dairy producers and artisans from across the country and featured tutored cheese tastings with beverage pairings, children’s cheese-making activities, professional development seminars, live entertainment, and more.
The 2026 festival will include both returning and new vendors, with general admission including access to all vendors, unlimited sampling, and the chance to explore a curated marketplace of cheesemakers, bakers, chocolatiers, cideries, wineries, and specialty food artisans.
Available at an extra cost, the intimate tutored tastings will see dairy industry experts pair Canadian cheeses with wines, ciders, and other complimentary beverages.
“These sessions sell out every year,” McDermott said. “Once people attend one, they always come back. It’s a truly immersive flavour experience.”
A general admission day pass to the festival is $35, or $50 for the entire weekend. Premium admission, which includes a insulated cooler swag bag and tasting glasses, is $50 for a day or $65 for the weekend. A VIP experience day pass, which includes the swag bag as well as tutored tasting access, is $115. Individual tutored tasting sessions cost $65 each.
“It’s a great fit for our city, adding one more reason to celebrate local food, restaurants, and farmers’ markets,” said Peterborough city councillors and community services co-chairs Lesley Parnell and Alex Bierk in a joint statement.
“It also gives the city an opportunity to highlight Ontario products, small businesses, and celebrate the way that food brings people together.”
For more information about the festival and to order passes and tutored tasting tickets, visit cheesefest.ca.
