East Coast Farm Expo will go on... but differently

Event manager Sue Wilson says they are well prepared to cope and have a robust plan in place.

“The Expo is all about quality rather than quantity, so our numbers are very containable,” says Wilson. “We are determined to make this work.”

Extra staff will be brought on to help manage the additional workload for the event, which is backed by the Wairoa Community Development Trust. There will be a one-way system in place around the site. The six defined zones of the Expo will be limited to a maximum of 100 people at any one time.

The event is set to run February 23-24 at the Wairoa A&P Showgrounds.

“It is disappointing that an event of our size is excluded from the Government’s Events Transition Support Payment Scheme, where arts and culture events with attendee capacity of 100-5000 ticketed or un-ticketed are covered,” she says.

Wilson has written to both the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment as well as the Minister for Small Business, Stuart Nash, but has had little joy.

“The outlay of costs is relevant to the size of our event and will affect small local businesses who have already been affected with the cancellations of A&P Shows, and charity fetes and markets,” she says.

“Given how important the agricultural sector is to New Zealand, something that was particularly highlighted during Covid times, I would have expected a little more thought to be put into this. Some certainty for our events in provincial New Zealand would be appreciated so we too can continue to plan and roll out gatherings that are critical to the tapestry of our regions.”

Where & When

What: East Coast Farming Expo

When: February 23-24, 2022

Where: Wairoa A&P Showgrounds

More Info: www.eastcoastexpo.co.nz