The National Blueberry Festival is happening all weekend in South Haven.
Festival Board President Brianne Hooper tells us around 100,000 people are expected to make their way to town for the event, making it one of the biggest celebrations of the year in South Haven, second only to the Fourth of July fireworks. The festival is all about celebrating Southwest Michigan agriculture and the significance of blueberries as one of its crops.
“We celebrate with a pie eating contest, a parade, free music that is offered every evening, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8 p.m. And we really just have a little bit of something for everybody, so we invite everyone to come out and join us,” Hooper said.
There will be a 5K, book sales, carnival rides, a beer tent, and a special blueberry pancake breakfast on Saturday morning. Hooper says wherever you go in South Haven this weekend, you’ll be able to find blueberries.
“In addition to the farmers that are there, we’ll have other vendors and each vendor is challenged with having a blueberry item to feature. So for the booth that is selling dog collars, they’ll have dog collars with blueberries on them. Or people who are selling candles or soaps, you may find blueberry items there as well.”
The National Blueberry Festival is now in its 62nd year, and Hooper says the event is expected to generate about $9 million in economic activity for the community.
There will be a free shuttle running people from South Haven High School and Senior Services of Van Buren County to the event downtown so visitors don’t have to worry about finding parking. It is wheelchair accessible.
Hooper says the best thing about the National Blueberry Festival are all of the families that have made it a tradition to come out each year.
