Farm Aid Warns of Cancellation if Local Worker Strike Continues—’The Financial Impact Could Be Devastating’

Farm Aid warns its annual festival could be cancelled if the University of Minnesota and striking workers cannot reach a deal by next week.

Organizers of Farm Aid’s annual festival, which raises money for farmers across the country, have warned that the event may be relocated or even cancelled if striking workers and administration at the University of Minnesota cannot reach an agreement. The annual festival, organized by Willie Nelson, Neil Young, and John Mellencamp, is slated to be held at U of M—and the financial impacts of being forced to move or cancel the event “could be devastating.”

Food service, custodial, and maintenance employees working for the university have been on strike since Monday. Farm Aid organizers stress that workers who were scheduled to begin building the concert stage and setting up for the event on Friday will “not cross a picket line.”

“We want nothing more than to hold this event as planned,” said festival organizers in a statement posted on Thursday. “Today, the University’s Teamsters employees are on strike because of the University’s inability to come back to the table to resolve this contract dispute justly. We are deeply concerned that this jeopardizes our ability to hold Farm Aid 40 as planned, but primarily puts these workers in a place of hardship as they labor to provide basic needs for their families.”

In its own statement, the University of Minnesota said it “is and will remain highly supportive of farmers,” and that it “values the mission and aim of the Farm Aid festival, and has gone above and beyond to partner with the organizers to create an exceptional experience for attendees and artists.” The university points out that the decision about whether the event moves forward “is theirs; it is not a University of Minnesota decision.”

The University’s Teamsters are asking for a wage increase that “meets or exceeds” 3.5%, which officials state has been provided to other bargaining units, including graduate students. 82% of the 1,400 workers of Teamsters Local 320 rejected the university’s latest offer.

Meanwhile, Fire Aid organizers said they are looking at other options for hosting the event, but pivoting on such short notice is “not an easy task.”

“It is critical to understand that if Farm Aid 40 is forced to move or cancel, the financial impact could be devastating. The expenses already incurred to bring this historic event to Minnesota may well threaten the survival of our organization after four decades of service to family farmers.”

“We urge the University of Minnesota to settle this contract quickly so that Farm Aid 40 can proceed as intended—to celebrate four decades of farmers, music, and solidarity,” Farm Aid’s statement concludes. “The world is watching, and together we can make sure this anniversary is remembered for unity, not division.”