Organizers of The China Fisheries and Seafood Expo, originally scheduled for October have postponed the show for another year, amidst rising cases of COVID-19 in China and the ensuing travel restrictions.

The show had already been postponed to November, then cancelled, and then re-instated for mid-December, before Tuesday being postponed for another year.

Due to the growing number of COVID-19 cases in China, Qingdao city officials are still unable to relax the prohibitions on mass gatherings such as trade shows. In addition, pandemic quarantine and control policies continue to restrict in-country travel between Chinese cities to reduce the risk of pandemic transmission, the organizer said in an email to exhibitors.

The 26th show is now rescheduled for Oct. 25-27 2023.

More than 800 companies had signed up to exhibit at CFSE 2022, with an estimated 18,000 visitors from throughout China expected to attend.

“The past three years have been a real challenge,” said Peter Redmayne, president of Sea Fare Expositions earlier this month. “We really look forward to things getting back to normal.”

The show was last held in Qingdao in 2019.