Placing safety above tradition, members of the Brooklet Downtown Development Association have canceled the 31st annual Brooklet Peanut Festival.

The popular event was scheduled for Sept. 19, having been moved from August a few years ago to avoid the summer heat. However, concern over the coronavirus outbreak led local leaders to shutter the festivities this year.

An announcement on the Brooklet Peanut Festival website explains the reasons for the cancellation.

“After continued monitoring of the evolving elements in the developments of the COVID-19 global pandemic, remaining in close contact and collaboration with our local government, and for economic reasons, it is with deep regret we are canceling the 31st Annual Brooklet Peanut Festival.”

BDDA member Joanne Nesmith, who handles communications for the festival, was not immediately available for comment Wednesday.

With social distancing still in effect and likely to be for some time to come, organizers felt it would be a safer move to wait until next year for the festival, which traditionally draws a large crowd from across the region.

The online announcement further reads: “The health, well-being and safety of our sponsors, vendors, festival attendees, volunteers, performers and local community members who make our festival what it is year after, have and always will continue to be our highest priority.”

The festival is expected to resume on schedule Sept. 18, 2021, according to the website.

The Brooklet Peanut Festival is known for celebrating the town’s agricultural history by highlighting its major crop. The annual event includes a foot race, slow tractor race, beauty pageant and parade, as well as a day of live entertainment, vendors and, of course, peanuts any way imaginable.