DADE CITY, Fla. — The 2026 Kumquat Festival went on in Dade City despite a cold snap that forced an early harvest, leaving farmers short on fruit and pushing the event from its original date into March.
Even so, the festival drew crowds and gave local businesses and vendors a chance to make money.
WATCH: Freeze disrupts kumquat supply at 2026 Dade City festival, but crowds and vendors still show up
Greg Gude is a 4th-generation kumquat farmer whose family owns and operates Kumquat Growers, one of the largest kumquat producers in the country. At his festival booth, the lines he was used to seeing simply were not there.
"We had to wholesale a bunch of it off because we had picked so much, but with this long of a span between the festival, there's fruit out there, but it's dried up," Gude said.
The Kumquat Festival was originally scheduled for Gasparilla weekend, but was cancelled due to cold and windy weather. That same weather forced the Gude family to harvest earlier than usual, leaving them short of supply for the rescheduled date.
"With what we have, we're not going to be able to make that money up, but you know, um, with the festival, we're going to at least be able to get some money," Gude said.
Despite the shortage, the streets of Dade City were packed with locals and out-of-towners. The festival provided an opportunity for local businesses and small vendors to showcase what they have to offer.
Kassandra Tanguay was among those vendors. Now in her second year at the festival, she said the event was a new experience when she first heard about it.
"I had no idea what a kumquat was or that there was a kumquat festival. Festival, and I said, why not? Let's give it a go, and you never know until you try something new if you like it, and now I'm back for the second year," Tanguay said.
The rescheduled date also created challenges for Tanguay.
"It is hard because this is to make ends meet, but with Kumquat Fest being rescheduled, everyone was relying on that day for January," Tanguay said.
Still, her clay jewelry was a hit at the festival, and the event gave her and many others the chance to show off their work.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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