Community
9 May, 2023
Field days set for a record
Thousands of visitors and hundreds of exhibitors expected at Mareeba
THIS year’s biennial Rotary FNQ Field Days at Mareeba are expected to set a record.
Event chairman and Mareeba shire councillor Kevin Davies said the three-day event, which was the biggest of its kind in northern Australia, had grown exponentially since its conception in the mid-1980s, with more than 15,000 people attending in 2021 and a record 500 exhibitors featured.
“This year’s event promises to set the bar even higher, with a showcase of brand-new attractions and exhibits and about 50 additional sites,” he said.
Mr Davies said the show was hosted by the Rotary Clubs of Atherton and Mareeba, with all monies raised donated to charities and community organisations.
He said the key theme for this year’s event was a celebration of agriculture.
“This event occurs every two years and the economic benefit it brings to, not just Mareeba and Atherton, but to the region as a whole is huge,” he said.
“The field days also creates an opportunity to catch up with old friends, colleagues and distributors.
“This is not only a field day but a social gathering for many.”
This year’s event will see the return of crowd-favourite attractions such as the Brown and Hurley agriculture tractor pull and garden tractor display, health and wellbeing displays, daily working machinery demonstrations, events in the arena, cattle display, emergency services demonstrations, and much more.
Site co-ordinator Nina Grant said 98 per cent of sites were now sold out.
“We have many exhibitors that come back year after year to the field days because they do so well over the three days,” she said.
“So many businesses report great sales and great customer interaction as well as generating new interest from being out in the public.
“Due to this success, we have businesses that have never taken part in the field days and want to be involved and get their name out there. So we’ve created more exhibitor sites to allow for this growth and it’s something we’re really excited about.”
Online ticket sales bookings are available which allows visitors to get through the gate faster but tickets can also be bought at the gate.
The field days are on Wednesday, May 24 and Thursday, May 25 from 9am to 6pm, and Friday, May 26 from 9am to 4pm.
To volunteer email volunteer@fnqfieldday.org.au
To book a site visit www.fnqfielddays.org.au
