Friday, March 29, 2024

ALTERNATIVE VIEW: CD Field Days was one for the books

Avatar photo
We went to the Central Districts Field Days last weekend, and it was an enjoyable and invigorating experience. It was also impeccably organised.
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Parking was easy, we walked straight into the event and received a program that told me everything I needed to know. The only criticism I’d have was that there wasn’t a coffee cart right inside the gate. It took me a while to find one and get my daily fix. Having said that, the coffee was great.

I was pleased that we eventually came to have an event, as covid-19 put a stop to last year’s.

Anyone sceptical of the ability of rural New Zealand to make the country prosperous post covid-19 should have been at Manfield. The crowds were huge and it was rural people in the main who were there.

There were gumboots, work boots and sensible shoes. Singlets, Swazis and shirts were there as well. The only ties I saw were on two lost looking gentlemen in suits. I figured they were probably Ministry for the Environment (MfE) people checking emissions. As everyone was walking around, I’m sure the event was environmentally-friendly.

On the other hand, they could have been serious-minded people from either the NZ Animal Law Association or SAFE there to check animal cruelty in the performing dogs.

The crowd appeared relaxed, as they do at rural events. They were there to learn, buy and enjoy – and they did. There were all ages and races there, and I heard foreign languages spoken with some regularity.

The tag line on the Field Days programme is “connect, discover and experience the best of NZ’s primary industries at Central Districts Field Days” – and it did just that.

The exhibits were amazing. The advances in machinery, for example, was mind blowing. I spent a season driving tractors some decades ago, but don’t ask me to drive a current model. The technology, brilliant as it is, would be beyond me. I can understand why extensive training is required to drive one.

Saying that, there were machinery brands exhibited there that I hadn’t heard of.

I read in the program that conservatively sales at the previous event were in excess of $41 million and I can believe that.

What interested me is that we can often hear how it is tragic that people are no longer connected to a farm. That NZ is too removed from the rural sector.

The counter to that is being connected to a farm 20 or 30 years ago is largely irrelevant in today’s farming environment. It is much more technical and precise than it used to be, as amply demonstrated by all the technology stands.

As a rural advocate it was good to read the Manawatu District Mayor’s comments in the program. Helen Worboys believed that agriculture and food production are strong and growing rural industries are “surging ahead and taking over as the backbone of the New Zealand economy”.

Taking over as the backbone of the economy is correct and it was visible at the field days. The hundreds of exhibits that included everything from Fanny Adams knickers to huge cranes mounted on trucks.

There were several stands on training and the career prospects in the sector. I don’t remember seeing that previously.

Lincoln and Massey were represented, as you’d expect, but so were many secondary schools.

It was interesting talking to the AFFCO crew about the opportunities and issues concerning trading with China. AFFCO had just announced its new lamb schedule at almost a dollar above existing rates. It certainly had farmers talking. 

The fencing, diggers, bikes and dogs were all worth seeing and yet again demonstrated the complexity of rural living. As a showcase of our skills, it was superb.

Another enjoyable part of the field days is randomly meeting old mates and colleagues. The downside of that is it does extend the day for some hours, but it was well worth it. Many left with lighter wallets.

As with other years, the food was local and enjoyable. What caught my eye as a sign saying “good beer”. Interesting, I thought. Is there such a thing as bad beer? Certainly not in my experience. 

I’m glad I attended the CD Field Days. As I’ve said, it was impeccably organised and spectacular. It had a relaxed, friendly atmosphere, there was a lot to see and a lot to learn. A visit to the event should be a required activity for the army of civil servants in Wellington who fall over themselves to impose crazy restrictions on us with blissful ignorance of the sector. A visit to the field days would help fix that blissful ignorance, as it would with many politicians. I’m starting a collection to get the Green crew there next year. 

As a showcase for rural NZ, I’d give it 10 out of 10.

Total
0
Shares
People are also reading