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EVERY year they dedicatethousands of volunteer hoursto running what is a worldclass event, but you will nothear any of the Agfest commit-tee complaining.

For many, free weekendsare virtually non-existent inthe lead-up to Tasmania’s big-gest rural event as the prepara-tions get into full swing.

CREAM OF THE CROP: Agfest committee with Agnes the cow, who will feature outside the Rural Youth site where patrons can write messages on the statue. Picture: KAROLIN MACGREGOR

Showcasing team spiritNow with less than a week

to go, committee members willput their everyday lives onhold and move out to QuercusPark, which will be their homeaway from home.

More than 70 volunteerswill help out at Agfest this yearincluding the key committeemembers.

For operations managerRicky Edson this will be hiseighth Agfest.

Already Mr Edson hasspend about 1000 hours work-ing on this year’s event includ-ing hundreds of phone calls.

Fitting in all this workaround his day job as a fulltime truck driver is a challenge.

“I normally go to work withthree phones and an iPadnow,” he said.

“I have a work phone, mypersonal phone and the Agfestphone. The technology now

makes things a bit easier be-cause I can answer emailswhile on my breaks at work.”

Like many of the committeemembers who now have roleswith more responsibility MrEdson started out parking cars.

“I just keep coming back, Ilove it,” he said.

“It does take up a lot of time,but you get a lot of confidenceout of it and a sense of achieve-ment. It goes to show what

young people can do if theywork together.”

Over the past few weeks thevolunteers have been workinghard to ensure the site is readyto host its 754 exhibitors.

This year that has involvedspreading more than 600 ton-nes of gravel that has been do-nated for the site.

“We try to use local suppli-ers as much as we can,” MrEdson said.

“It does generate a lot ofbusiness and our regular sup-pliers are great to deal with.”

Co-ordinating things on sitetakes a bit of juggling at times.

“You have to be a bit logisti-cally minded,” Mr Edson said.

“There’s a lot that happensbehind the scenes that a lot ofpeople probably don’t even re-alise. We just try to work as ateam and run this event in a re-ally professional way.”

KAROLIN MACGREGOR

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Agfest action runs from8am to 5pm each day.

There is free parking on siteand event organiser RuralYouth is also offering freebuses between Launceston andthe Agfest site.

There are also bus services

The offerings range fromhomemade sweet treats to his-torical pictures, children’sproducts, homewares, bonsaitrees, jewellery and skincareitems.

There are also wildlife local-ly produced leather goods,

photographs, paintings, scent-ed candles and a huge array ofhomewares as well as clothingand accessories of all kinds.

The craft area also caters forthose inspired to try their ownskills with wool products,yarns and craft kits.

FOR the past 15 years RuralYouth and Agfest have been abig part of Kate Birch’s life, butas the field days loom intoclose range she still gets excit-ed about the event.

In her role as Agfest chair-man, Ms Birch will overseeTasmania’s biggest rural eventfrom Thursday, which is set toprovide almost $27 million tothe state’s economy.

Agfest is run solely by more

Leader confident in future of rural pursuits

than 70 volunteers from RuralYouth Tasmania, an organis-ation that does not get anygovernment funding.

This Agfest again boasts bignumbers, with more than 750exhibitors booking spots at theQuercus Park site near Car-rick. The three-day eventdraws tens of thousands of pat-rons each year.

An energetic Ms Birch isonce again enjoying her role.

“It’s a volunteer role I de-cided to do and get excitedabout,” Ms Birch said. “My pre-vious roles on the committeehave been leading to beingchairman. I am now in my sec-

ond and last term so this is partof my retirement plan fromRural Youth.”

Ms Birch said she had lovedher involvement with RuralYouth.

“It’s been a happy mediumof friendship and professionallearning,” she said.

“I enjoy the grassrootsnetworks of Rural Youth andAgfest. It is my farm away fromhome, my rural link and myopportunity to provide back tothe Tasmanian community.”

Ms Birch’s paid job is eventand marketing co-ordinatorwith Variety Tasmania.

Ms Birch has two children,eight-year-old Victoria andsix-year-old Claire.

“They are excited aboutcoming to Agfest and maybewill be involved when they areold enough,” she said.

The Agfest committee hasdeveloped into a tight unit,adopting a long-term outlook.

“We are working on Agfestfor years to come, not just this

year’s, but ensuring the lon-gevity of Agfest,” Ms Birchsaid. “I hope my children canbe part of it. It’s exciting for meto be part of it.”

RY is open to young peoplefrom the country and from thecity aged from 15 to 30.

Ms Birch said her reign asTasmania’s Rural Woman ofthe Year in 2013 had helpedbuild her confidence.

Ms Birch joined RuralYouth in 2002 after attendingmeetings at the Sorell club.

ROGER HANSON

Kate Birch

to Agfest from Hobart andsouthern regions and theNorth-West Coast.

Tickets are available on siteand cost $25 for adults and $5for children aged five to 15years. Entry is free for childrenunder five.

IT was supposed to be a retire-ment project to keep thembusy but Debbie and HelenaWoodcock’s Pure and PurpleGarlic business has grown intoa bit more than that.

The sisters-in-law are mar-ried to brothers and both liveat Kimberley in the North-West where their growingbusiness is located.

IN DEMAND: Garlic growers Helena, left, and Debbie Woodcock of Pure and Purple Garlic at Kimberley. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Growers find purple patchDebbie said initially their

plan was just to grow and sellfresh garlic.

“We had both retired andwe really just wanted a littlebusiness to give us somethingto do,” she said.

“We didn’t realise how busywe would be.”

After sourcing seed andplanting their first crop, theystarted selling fresh garlic tolocal retailers.

While the flavour of thefresh, locally grown garlic isfantastic, Debbie said onceautumn arrives the garlic bulbsnaturally want to shoot so theyhad to come up with a way tomake the garlic last longer.

After two years of sellingjust fresh garlic their objectivewas to add value to the crop.

They started drying some ofthe garlic so it can be used yearround.

From there they have alsocome up with a range ofunique garlic and herb combi-nations, some which includenative pepper berry.

This year the pair will selltheir range of dried garlic andherb mixes at Agfest for thefirst time.

So far their range includesfive different flavour combina-tions. These are their originalgarlic salt and pepper mix as

well as garlic and chilli, lemonmyrtle, orange and fennel anda rosemary mix.

They will have all the differ-ent products available for pat-rons to try and will also beputting together gift packs.

All the products are handmade, but Helena said if de-mand keeps increasing theymay have to look at upgradingtheir processing facilities downthe track.

“We do enjoy it, but it's verylabour intensive,” she said.

“It has been a big learningcurve too running our ownbusiness and all the things thatgo along with that.”

The crops are planted inApril and harvested in aboutNovember.

Last year the pair planted10,000 garlic plants and thisseason they will plant about15,000.

KAROLIN MACGREGOR

Tens of thousands get a taste of the countryAGFEST is Tasmania’s biggestrural event and every year itattracts tens of thousands ofpatrons.

The field days are held atQuercus Park in Carrick in thestate’s North from Thursday toSaturday.

Crafty choices make Mother’s Day gifts a breeze PATRONS looking for a last-minute Mother’s Day presentat Agfest should head to thecraft pavilions.

The craft exhibitors aremostly small nice businessesoffering a huge range of prod-ucts at the field days.

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IT may only be days away butAgfest has a waiting list of ex-hibitors hoping to secure a spotat Tasmania’s biggest ruralevent.

More than 50 would-be ex-hibitors are currently on thelist in case a last-minute placein this year’s event opens up.

Managing the list and look-ing after the other 754 busi-nesses that will be part of thisyear’s Agfest is exhibitor man-ager Ethan Williams.

At 23, Mr Williams is notonly the youngest exhibitormanager the event has had, heis also the only bloke who hastaken on the role so far.

CROWD-PULLER: Brian Fish and his team of bullocks are returning to Agfest this year.

Field days a showcase of traditions and technologyWHILE Agfest is a premierTasmanian event for exhibitors showcasing the latest in vehicles and farm machinery, it also allows traditional pulling power to take centre stage – literally.

Brian Fish and his team of bullocks return to this year’s field days for displays of power and precision from a bygone era.

Mr Fish and his bullocks are part

of the line-up of entertainment at the central arena in Quercus Park inCarrick.

His bullock team will be doing a display on the arena at 3pm every dayduring the three-day event.

Other highlights on the programfor the central arena include whipcracking specialists the Milburn family, working sheepdogs and drones in agriculture.

There will also be displays ofproducts and power tools every day of the event.

The entertainment line-up alsoincludes performances by localmusicians and the Australian Royal Navy Band Tasmania.

There is also non-stop action onthe four-wheel-drive track withdemonstrations and safety tips.

Horsepower of a different kind is

on display on a dedicated equine arena, where demonstrations include eventing and injury prevention.Retailers in the Equine Expo cater for horse lovers’ needs.

Agfest also hosts a round of the Australian timbersports championships.

Since the event is a showcase of agriculture, Tasmanian food and drinks are always a prominent

feature at Agfest. The Unique Taste pavilion brings under one roof a wide variety of different flavours and cuisines.

Patrons can sample everything from game dishes to seafoods, locally made ice cream and other sweet treats.

The pavilion also includes Tasmanian producers of beers, wines and ciders.

Late rush to get on board

“We get phone calls andemails every day from peoplewanting to get in and sayingthey can get here at the lastminute,” he said.

“There is a proper approvals

process that has to be followedthough. We are a rural event sothat means not all the busi-nesses are going to meet thestandards we need to includethem.

“ We would like to be able toinclude everyone, and it’s greatthey want to support us, but wealso want to keep the agricul-tural focus.”

The 754 exhibitors includebusinesses from small craft op-erators to machinery and ve-hicle dealerships, food anddrink providers, livestock studsand retailers.

While working full time as abutcher as well as taking careof his Agfest responsibilitieshas been a challenge, Mr Willi-

ams said he was enjoying thejob so far.

“It has been really busy andjuggling the two has been a bitdifficult at times but I do likeit,” he said.

Dealing with hundreds ofexhibitors and their inquiries isone part of Mr Williams’s role.

The other part is makingsure things out on site areready to go when exhibitorsstart rolling in.

“One of the main things hasbeen making sure all the sitesare marked out,” he said.“With the wind and the rainsome of the lines disappear, soI’ve had to keep an eye on allthat.”

Marquees are already

springing up on site as prepa-rations get into full swing forthis year’s Agfest, which kicksoff on Thursday.

Being a member of the Ag-fest committee means sacrific-ing a significant amount of freetime in the lead-up to the eventand Mr Williams is no excep-tion.

He has been out on siteevery weekend for the past 10weeks.

Taking on the new role hasalso allowed him to developsome new skills.

“It think people manage-ment has probably been thebiggest thing,” he said.

“I’m used to dealing withpeople at the butcher shop, but

being able to reply to emailsproperly and get informationback to people in a hurry hasbeen something I’ve had tolearn.”

Mr Williams said he antici-pates things will get even morehectic.

As usual the weather condi-tions will also play a big part inhow smoothly preparations go.

“The last two years we’vehad issues with wind and themarquees so hopefully thatwon’t happen again this time,”he said.

“We’d like some weatherjust like today — fine andabout 20 degrees. Some of ourbiggest crowds have been allfine weather years.”

KAROLIN MACGREGOR We get phone calls and emails everyday from people wanting to get in and saying they can get here at the last minute

ETHAN WILLIAMS

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TASMANIA’S wool-designand manufacturing businesseswill be among the key attrac-tions at this year’s Agfest.

Using locally grown super-fine Merino wool and beingTasmanian-made is the keyselling point for clothing de-sign and manufacturing com-pany Smitten Merino.

Carl and Nicola Mason andtheir children Holly, Brookeand Daniel run Smitten Mer-ino, creating a wide range ofgarments.

They create sportswearused by high-performance ath-letes on outdoor adventuresand thermals for anyone feel-ing the Tasmanian chill. Smit-ten also produces a range ofwomen’s fashion.

“The fact that most of thewool comes from here, and thegarments are designed andmanufactured in Tasmania isour No.1 selling tool,” MrMason said.

The Masons wanted to cre-ate an ethical and sustainablebusiness using Tasmanian

wool farming and manufac-ture.

“We wanted a business thathad integrity, but was alsogood for Tasmania’s econ-omy,” Mr Mason said.

“Many Tasmanian farmersreally care about their environ-ment and the sheep. The live-stock husbandry is excellent.”

He said wool was the per-fect locally produced fibre thatused to be shipped offshore.

“No man-made fibre cancompete in performance to cir-cular-knitted superfine Mer-ino wool.”

Mr Mason said wool did notsmell, it dried rapidly and wasnot scratchy or itchy, making ita superior material.

Tasmanian polar expedi-tioner Eric Philips is presentlyusing Smitten Merino outdoorgarments in his quest to ski tothe North Pole.

2017

Wool claimspole position

LOCAL FLAIR: Holly Mason from Smitten Wool.

ROGER HANSON

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