Animal rights activists have called on a seaside town to replace its annual mackerel festival with a celebration of cabbage instead. The Aberaeron Mackerel Festival takes place in August to mark the end of the fishing season in the Ceredigion town, where the event is described as “a light-hearted funeral” for the fast-swimming fish.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) wants the popular event to be an “animal-friendly” and “kinder” cabbage fiesta instead. In response, councillor Elizabeth Evans said fishing was “part of our heritage in Aberaeron”, while the “growing of cabbages is not”.
During the celebration, a large papier mache mackerel is carried by bearers through the town over to the yacht club, before it is blessed and then burned at sunset.
Peta sent a letter to Lloyd Thomas, president of Aberaeron Yacht Club, suggesting the town “swap fish-focused festivities for an animal-friendly celebration of Welsh produce” by hosting an Aberaeron Cabbage Fiesta. The group also offered to provide organisers with a giant papier mache vegetable to replace the fiesta's traditional mackerel.
The letter urged Thomas to “let fish off the hook and transform the Aberaeron Mackerel Fiesta into a kinder event”.
“Celebrating life-giving plant produce rather than fish slaughter would be more in line with the compassion and warmth Wales is known for,”
Peta said the idea could also support local farmers who grow cabbage. The group ended the letter by saying it hoped it inspired Aberaeron to “turn over a new leaf and let mackerel swim free”.
How did the town respond?
Councillor Elizabeth Evans said many people may have a different view, but fishing has reduced dramatically in the bay. She said the Aberaeron Mackerel Festival is “a celebration of a fish which has been in our local waters for generations” and that it is “a festival of gratitude and respect”.
“Whilst many may have a different view, fishing has reduced dramatically in the bay, as has fishing more generally.”
Evans said the town no longer had “a single fishing boat” and that this was “a matter of regret not celebration”. She added that local boat owners who do fish the waters do so “sustainably”.
“The Aberaeron Mackerel Festival is a celebration of a fish which has been in our local waters for generations. It is a festival of gratitude and respect.
“Whilst many may have a different view, fishing has reduced dramatically in the bay, as has fishing more generally.”
“The huge industrial trawlers which fish the waters around the UK are quite a different matter altogether,”
Evans said she respected the views expressed in the letter, but that they did not reflect the town's “lived experience as a community”, which is “one of respect not entitlement”. Aberaeron Yacht Club has been approached for a response to the cabbage fiesta proposal.
What happens at the festival?
Each year, the festival features a large papier mache mackerel carried through Aberaeron by bearers to the yacht club, where it is blessed and then burned at sunset. The event marks the end of the fishing season and is presented as a light-hearted funeral for the fish.
The proposal from Peta would replace that tradition with an Aberaeron Cabbage Fiesta, using a giant papier mache vegetable and shifting the emphasis to Welsh produce and local farming. The group said that would be “more in line with the compassion and warmth Wales is known for”.
Evans said the town's connection to fishing remained important even as the local industry had changed. She said there was no longer “a single fishing boat” in Aberaeron, but said the tradition remained one of “gratitude and respect”.
The councillor also contrasted small-scale local activity with “the huge industrial trawlers which fish the waters around the UK”, which she said were “quite a different matter altogether”.
What did Peta hope to achieve?
Peta said its suggestion was intended to make the event more animal-friendly while still celebrating local identity. It described the cabbage fiesta as a way to “swap fish-focused festivities for an animal-friendly celebration of Welsh produce”.
The group also framed the idea as a chance to back local agriculture, saying the town could support farmers who grow cabbage. Its closing appeal said it hoped Aberaeron would “turn over a new leaf and let mackerel swim free”.
The Aberaeron Mackerel Festival remains scheduled for August, and the yacht club has been asked for a response to the proposal.
Key Facts
- The Aberaeron Mackerel Festival takes place in August at the end of the fishing season.
- Peta wants it replaced with an Aberaeron Cabbage Fiesta.
- Councillor Elizabeth Evans said fishing is part of Aberaeron's heritage.
- Evans said there is no longer “a single fishing boat” in the town.
- Aberaeron Yacht Club has been approached for a response.
