Yours & Owls set to be the first NSW festival to feature new pill testing trial
The announcement comes from NSW Government today, while the festival is still awaiting council approval for its 2025 edition in just two weeks' time.
The NSW Government has announced today that Dharawal Land/Wollongong-based festival Yours & Owls will be the first in the state to be a part of its new pill testing trial.
In December of 2024, the Minns Labour government shared details of a pill testing trial set to take place across NSW over the following 12 months.
As reported on by Mixmag ANZ at the time, the trial will be totally anonymous and free to access by punters. It will cost NSW taxpayers just over $1 million total, according to the government. In practice, the trial will allow festival goers the opportunity to have a small sample of their 'substances' tested, on the basis of purity, potency and adulterants.
Ben Tillman, owner and director of Yours & Owls, was vocally excited to be part of the trial.
“Pill testing is something we have been fighting for some time now,” he said.
“While Yours and Owls maintains a zero-tolerance policy to illegal drugs, we are realists and see the abstinence-only approach as unhelpful. Pill testing is not a panacea; however, it is a proven harm minimisation strategy and has been successfully implemented in many countries overseas for the past 20 or so years.
Ultimately, we ask individuals to take responsibility for themselves and their decision-making to ensure they have a great time safely. We also encourage anyone who finds themselves or their mates in trouble to seek medical assistance immediately; there will be no judgment – you won’t get into trouble. Patrons need to remember their safety and that of their mates is the most important thing.”
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As part of the announcement, NSW Minister for Health Ryan Park was clearly careful not to insinuate that pill testing meant any relaxing of approach to drug use by government bodies.
“Let me be clear, no level of illicit drug use is safe and pill testing services do not provide a guarantee of safety,” he said.
“There will always be risks involved when consuming these substances. However, this trial has been designed to provide people with the necessary information to make more informed decisions about drug use, with the goal of reducing drug-related harm and saving lives. Illicit drug use remains illegal in NSW. These services will not be made available to suppliers and police will continue to target them.”
Yours & Owls is set to take place on Saturday, March 1 and Sunday, March 2 at Flagstaff Hill, Dharawal Land/Wollongong.
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Jack Colquhoun is Mixmag ANZ's Managing Editor, find him on Instagram.
