The newly re-vamped Mountbellew Agricultural Show will be held in the Agricultural College grounds Mountbellew this Saturday.
The show, now in its 109th year, will have a number of new features, at the centre of which will be the A Taste of the West food and craft hall.
Local butchers, bakers, and food caterers will showcase their products and encourage the public to taste their food on site. The new leisure complex adjoining the show grounds has been made available for the occasion.
Another new innovation is the coming together of the local Miland’s Garden Centre and Galway Bay FM’s Ann McKeown with a wide range of floral issues to be discussed and a question and answer session to follow.
Cattle classes have been introduced and local Limousin breeder Tom Finnerty, owner of the successful Bovinion Limousin herd has organised an exhibition of Limousin and Charolais cattle.
There will be the All Ireland Sports Horse Filly and Colt Competition, which will take place in ring one, with entries coming from all over the country. Sheep farmers will be taking part in the Osmonds All-Ireland Best Pair of Galway Ewe Lambs.
It is expected the Minister for Food Tom Hayes TD will visit the show and present some of the trophies to winners in various competitions.
There will also be children’s art and a Kiddies Zone. Admission to the zone is free and under the stewardship of Ann O’Neill of Garrafine and her committee.
Another inclusion this year is the sheepdog demonstration staged by Joe McMonagle and his two dogs. Committee member Matt Lohan said the sheepdog demonstration would “bring a new dimension to the show and give the general public a chance to see the remarkable relationship between a man and his dogs”.
A test of strength by way of a special tug-of-war contest is being organised by Damien Conway of Newbridge involving local teams representing public houses in the area.
Mountbellew Agricultural Show chair Frank Collevy has also publicly thanked the show sponsors, including St Anne’s Guesthouse and Briggs’ Fashionwear Mountbellew, Miland’s Garden Centre, The Malt House Mountbellew, Arrabawn Co-op Mountbellew, Ganly’s Mountbellew, Londis Supermarket Mountbellew, Moylough Mountbellew Credit Union.
There will also be free car parking, all children are admitted free.
