Official opening of the Sunshine Coast Agricultural Show

Sunshine Coast Council Deputy Mayor Tim Dwyer, and fellow Councillors; Federal Member for Fairfax, Mr Ted O’Brien MP; President of the Sunshine Coast Agricultural Show, Councillor Jenny McKay; Patrons; ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,

It is a tremendous pleasure for Kaye and me to be in Nambour today to share in the sights, sounds and unmistakable smells of 113 celebrations of agricultural production across your supremely-fertile hills and valleys.

We thoroughly enjoy attending country shows like this one because here, condensed into three days and the boundaries of the Nambour Showgrounds, is some of the very best of what your community has to offer the world.

You have your food pavilion showcasing your sensational produce, and the new craft beer alley, which I’m sure will prove popular.

There’s all the usual fun of the sideshow, the fireworks and the local entertainment, and the old-time rural pursuits of show jumping and wood chopping, working dog competitions and the animal nursery.

And best of all, without a doubt, is the opportunity to savour that very special Sunshine Coast hospitality. You’re a warm and welcoming bunch, and why wouldn’t you be when you live in one of the most spectacular places on Earth, blessed with near-perfect weather and the most idyllic of backdrops?

I imagine the view from the hinterland is what entices your blue-ribbon offerings to rise out of the warm soil and give themselves up gladly to the many celebrated restaurants and delis across this region.

Today I feel privileged to share in this long-running and ever-popular celebration of the bountiful fruits of this beautiful stretch of land, and bask in the good nature of the people who call it home.

Thank you again for your wonderful hospitality. I am pleased to declare the 2018 Sunshine Coast Agriculture Show officially open!