Latest news with #AgriculturalShow
RNZ News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
Canterbury A&P Show back on track, say organisers
Crowds at the 2024 show. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon The Canterbury Agricultural & Pastoral Show is back on track, say organisers, after a last minute resurrection last year saved it from cancellation amid financial troubles, staff upheavals and board bickering . The show - which has a 160-year history - was cancelled in April last year after the A&P Association claimed it was not financially viable. After a $5 million injection from the Christchurch City Council and an almost complete overhaul of the board , a downscaled format was announced in conjunction with events management company Event Hire . Updating councillors at a meeting on Tuesday, Canterbury A&P Association chair Sir David Carter and general manager Peter Engel said last year's show had been a huge success, especially given the three month timeframe between the men coming on board and the show. Halving ticket prices had helped bring in strong crowd numbers, to the point that organisers were close to shutting the gates due to numbers at one point, Engel told the council. About 275 exhibitors took part, down on the usual 500, but Engel told the council some were influenced by the publicity surrounding the cancellation, and a tumultuous period in which the board was almost entirely replaced. Many larger agri-businesses did not feature as they did not budget for the show after it was initially cancelled, he said. Engel expected they would return in future shows. The downscaled show shifted from the traditional Wednesday to Friday, to being held from Thursday to Saturday, which Engel said had been well received. A "strong appetite for town meets country" saw farmyard animals, wood chopping and shearing exhibitions among the most popular attractions, he said. The city council's $5m bail out required the Association to use $1m to repay an existing council loan, while the remaining $4m bought out the remaining 95 years of the lease for Canterbury Agricultural Park, five hectares of council land on Wigram Road. The money was tagged to a new charitable investment trust, the revenue from which would be used to help cover the cost of running future shows. Former board member Steve Barry was paid $75,000 for his role in landing the deal, it later emerged . In September, the council gave the association another $125,000 without consulting councillors beforehand . Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Yahoo
22-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Agriculture Show opens in Paris with Morocco as guest of honour
Morocco will take centre stage at the 61st Agriculture Show, opening on 22 February in Paris, marking the first time a foreign country has been honoured as a guest of the renowned French fair. The "Salon de l'Agriculture" showcase is a major annual event in France, attracting some 600,000 visitors over nine days, and for the first time in more than 60 years, the fair will welcome a foreign country as guest of honour. "I looked at the European level, and at all the fairs, the international aspect of exchanges is emphasised. We cannot remain closed off from the world," Jérôme Desprey, president of the show, said on Friday. "We see this with the deterioration of our trade balance, which weighs on our agriculture. The Agricultural Show is also business, with the presence of interprofessional organisations and sectors," Desprey added. When asked about this choice in the context of tensions between France and Algeria, French Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard explained earlier this month that it was the decision of the show organisers, while asserting that it was a "good choice," which "continues the visit" of President Emmanuel Macron in October to Morocco. "We are within the framework of the International Agricultural Show. I want us to stay as much as possible within the agricultural field," added Genevard. Cherry tomato production Read more on RFI EnglishRead also:EU ramps up support for farmers with agricultural policy overhaul'My Cow, My Choice': Kenyan farmers resist livestock vaccination campaignFrench farmer convoys head to Paris as protests continue over pay, conditions
