Concerns about rising costs, security at Crop Over

As the 2025 Crop Over season officially gets underway this weekend, President of the Entertainment Association of Barbados, Rudy Maloney, says anticipation is high among patrons and stakeholders, despite ongoing challenges facing the entertainment sector.

Speaking to Barbados TODAY ahead of Saturday’s official launch, Maloney described the early energy around this year’s festival as promising. However, he acknowledged that some event producers remain uneasy due to lingering administrative hurdles and rising operational costs.

“There’s a lot of excitement in the atmosphere about the festival for 2025, [though] there’s some concern from the event producers,” he said. “They have been thinking about the process with BRA [Barbados Revenue Authority], and some have been also talking about COSCAP [Copyright Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers], and how expensive it is to put on events.”

Despite the challenges, Maloney said public response has been positive so far, and many promoters are optimistic that strong attendance and enhanced experiences will help offset the rising costs.

His comments follow a successful 2024 Crop Over season that drew large crowds of locals and visitors. But with concerns about crime still top of mind, Maloney said promoters are not taking chances in 2025 and have increased their investment in safety and security.

“We are always talking about safety—not just in 2025, but before—and it’s just continuing,” he said. “You want to make sure that all the patrons are protected and people come out and have a good time.”

Maloney added: “The event producers have been putting a lot of emphasis on safety and security, so I think it will be a very good season.”

 Maloney also acknowledged the growing popularity of breakfast and garden parties, which increased during last year’s four-week festival. He expects the trend to continue.

“We think that will continue; the events are pretty good events. The guys are working hard and making sure that people have [a good] experience,” he said. (SB)