Goderich Salt & Harvest Festival wins best promotional campaign and recognised as FEO Top 100 Event
- Mar 5
- 2 min read
Receiving two provincial recognitions at the Festival and Events Ontario (FEO) Awards Gala at the end of February, the Goderich Salt & Harvest Festival won best promotional campaign and named in the top 100 events.
According to the Town of Goderich, these honours recognise the festival’s marketing excellence, visitor appeal as well as the strength of its community and corporate partnerships.
Mayor Trevor Bazinet expressed pride when this event received FEO recognition.
“We are home to the largest underground salt mine in the world, and we’ve worked deliberately to build tourism experiences that reflect what makes our community truly unique,” said Mayor Bazinet.
“I also want to thank our staff and volunteers for the tremendous work behind the scenes. This award showcases their volunteer spirit and pride in serving Goderich.”
The 2025 Goderich Salt and Harvest Festival took place over Labour Day weekend (Aug. 28-31) throughout Goderich’s downtown and waterfront, offering dozens of activities.
Free events included the Salted Market, Above Ground Salt Experience, Mine Rescue Demonstrations, Salt Mine Virtual Reality, Salty Basin Beer Garden, Salt Walk, Thursday and Sunday BIA Salted Concerts, Farmers’ Market, Flea Market, petting zoo, wagon rides, family photo booth, and inflatables.
Paid events included the BIA Friday Night Concert, the Saturday Compass Minerals Concert, which featured Finger Eleven and sold out with 1,500 attendees, as well as bus tours, food trucks and salty menus at Goderich restaurants.
According to Goderich Tourism, the journey to establish Goderich’s salt tourism began in 2020. The inaugural festival in 2023, championed by past Mayors John Grace and Myles Murduck, has flourished under the continued support of Mayor Bazinet and their respective councils.
Designed as a signature tourism event, the festival authentically tells a distinctive local story. The event is funded through community and corporate support, including partnerships donations, sponsorships, and participant revenue.
Jenna Ujiye, Tourism and Community Development Manager stressed that this recognition reflects an enormous amount of work behind the scenes.
Town staff lead the planning and delivery of the Salt & Harvest Festival. This includes building the program and logistics to marketing and on-site operations.
“I’m grateful for the professionalism and commitment our team brings to this event,” said Ujiye.
“We also rely on strong partnerships and volunteers to make the festival sustainable and impactful, including Compass Minerals, the Goderich BIA, Royal LePage, Parrish & Heimbecker, Coldwell Banker and many local businesses and community supporters.”
According to Ujiye, the Best Promotional Campaign recognition reflects a coordinated approach across print, digital, media and on-site storytelling, including SaltedGoderich.ca as the event hub, an eight-page program and downtown site map, cohesive signage and wayfinding, the ‘Hidden Treasure Below’ booklet and a 28-foot Salt History Timeline, supported by radio promotion, influenced content and paid social advertising.
While Goderich Tourism looks ahead, the 2026 Goderich Salt & Harvest Festival is scheduled for Labour Day weekend (Sept. 3-6) with the Compass Minerals Concert on Saturday, Sept. 5. Further details about the 2026 festival and concert will be unveiled at the end of March.
For current information, please visit https://www.saltedgoderich.ca/festival
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