Rural
25 February, 2023
Farmers ready to shop at 2023 WMFD
Buoyed by a fourth consecutive stellar harvest – something almost unprecedented in Australian agriculture – local farmers are poised to gather in their hundreds for next month’s comeback edition of the Wimmera Machinery Field Days (WMFD). WMFD...
Buoyed by a fourth consecutive stellar harvest – something almost unprecedented in Australian agriculture – local farmers are poised to gather in their hundreds for next month’s comeback edition of the Wimmera Machinery Field Days (WMFD).
WMFD committee president and broadacre cropper Tim Rethus said this year will be the perfect scenario for organisers of an event such as this.
“A lot of us in the Wimmera Mallee have had four great years in a row, which is pretty much unheard of,” Mr Rethus said.
“The weather’s been nice and the site’s even kind of greenish at the moment.
“Right now, people are of a good mindset to look to develop their business and look for opportunities.
“Field days like ours are about where to find some of those really good ideas.
“It’s been three years now since our last event so that’s three years’ worth of development, three years’ worth of new technology since we last turned up here.
“That means a lot of interesting things for people to see.”
He said companies keen to tap into the potentially lucrative Wimmera Mallee market had been quick to sign up to exhibit.
“The exhibitors know it’s worthwhile coming to this – 100 per cent,” he said.
WMFD was one of the last agricultural events held before the worldwide tsunami of Covid lockdowns was announced in March 2020.
However, its plans to be the first field days staged post-pandemic were derailed 12 months ago after a second wave of Covid hit just as Victoria was starting its 2022 school year.
“Everyone was really worried and in the end we had to pull the pin,” Mr Rethus said.
“Staffing was going to be quite problematic and also, because of supply chain problems, everyone was missing gear – nobody had anything to actually exhibit so it would have been pretty sparse on site.
“We figured it was in the best interests of everyone not to exacerbate the Covid situation and to wait to have a better relaunch once we were all fully unrestricted.
“That’s what we’re doing this year, now that people have product to show.”
Rebuilding momentum had been easy for the team despite two years of inactivity and the disappointment of the 2022 cancellation, Mr Rethus said.
“People have been raring to go,” he said.
“The exhibitors are particularly keen to go again.”
Mr Rethus said stalwarts such as O’Connors and Emmetts, the local Case IH and John Deere dealerships respectively, would have two of the biggest sites.
However, they wouldn’t be alone in having a powerful presence at Longerenong on March 7, 8 and 9, he said.
“It’s fantastic that Oz Value Ag will have a massive site this year, and Wilson Bolton in Horsham has changed from being a Holden dealership to selling forklifts, loaders, excavators and trucks as well as cars, so they’re going to have a showcase exhibit right in the middle.”
A new “gourmet marketplace” will feature local fresh produce, wines and value-added foods, and within the pavilions many businesses will be participating for the first time thanks to the natural turnover that occurs among smaller indoor exhibitors.