AWAY from the paddocks and packing sheds of the busy horticultural hub, AustSafe Super and Bundaberg Fruit and Vegetable Growers Cooperative Ltd hosted the 6th Annual Unifying Agriculture Race Day last Saturday at Bundaberg.
Through sponsorship and donations, the day was hosted under the race club marquees and included sponsored races, a fresh regional produce display and centrepieces which were auctioned off at the end of the festivities.
The proceeds collected were donated to the Rural Flying Doctor Service and Life Flight to support the work of medical teams in regional and rural Queensland.
Hundreds from throughout the local agriculture fraternity donned their finest and headed trackside to embrace the fine Autumn conditions and five-race program.
AustSafe Super’s head of business development, Stacey Watson, said the event was as much about a celebration of the region as it was about raising funds.
“We are the fruit and veggie bowl of Australia and we need to shout it out loud and proud because I think we do a pretty good job,” Mrs Watson said.
Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) pilot, Adrian Smith, was on hand to lend his support to the event.
He said there were five pilots and seven nurses based in Bundaberg for the RFDS which flies all year round.
“Last year, in 2016 we carried 1900 patients from the Wide Bay region. That’s about five or six a day, so we are kept very busy,” he said.
He thanked those in attendance for their support of the organisation.
Ashley Walmsley
Ashley Walmsley is the editor of ACM's only national, fresh produce magazine, Good Fruit & Vegetables, while also covering horticulture stories for the agricultural papers and websites. He also writes the weekly, The Ringer, column in the Qld Country Life.
Ashley Walmsley is the editor of ACM's only national, fresh produce magazine, Good Fruit & Vegetables, while also covering horticulture stories for the agricultural papers and websites. He also writes the weekly, The Ringer, column in the Qld Country Life.
