A popular food festival that drew thousands of visitors will not be returning to Wrexham this year.

Organisers of the Wrexham Food Festival say it is 'with a heavy heart' that they have made the decision to cancel the 2020 event.

The festival took place with more than 80 stalls on September 7 and 8 last year, taking over the large Llwyn Isaf field outside the Guildhall and drawing thousands of people to the town centre.

In a statement posted online, Sam Regan spoke on behalf of the event committee.

He said: “As you all know the committee who run Wrexham Food Festival all give our time on a completely voluntary basis, and we all run businesses within the Wrexham area.

The Leader:

Wrexham Food Festival

"Unfortunately, due to work commitments and personal projects that some of us are undertaking in our own businesses this year, it became apparent that there would be a lack of capacity to ensure that the Festival was effectively delivered without further assistance and/or from a third party organisation.

“During the latter part of 2019, and into 2020, we have been in talks with other organisations and individuals to attempt to find a partner to assist in ensuring that the festival went ahead. But despite our best efforts, we have been unable to formally involve anyone else despite good will from many people.

“Therefore, it is with a heavy heart that we have decided that we are unable to move forward with a date for 2020, a move that in effect means that it will not go ahead under the existing team again.”

Organisers say that they are “immensely proud of what has been achieved over the past two years” and are “absolutely gutted” to find themselves in a position where the event cannot continue this year.

Mr Regan continued: “However, we feel that this is absolutely the right thing to do, as to poorly execute would be detrimental to those who are involved.

"We can't thank you all enough for your support, and belief in what we have put together over the last two years.”

The Leader previously reported that the 2019 festival drew approximately 7,500 visitors and around £250,000 was spent on site.

The statement concludes by saying the festival had a small fund to help the committee kick start the 2020 event, and those funds will now be ‘distributed transparently in full to local charities’.