Wright stuff: Farm expo celebrates 40 years

Primex director Bruce Wright is gearing up for a bumper crop at this May’s milestone Norco Primex field day, capping a 40 year involvement by his family.

Primex director Bruce Wright (inset) with Case Tractors.

Primex director Bruce Wright is gearing up for a bumper crop at this May’s milestone Norco Primex field day.

Inaugurated by his father John in 1985, this year’s agricultural expo at Casino’s Richmond Valley Events Centre is a 40-year landmark for three generations of the Gold Coast-based Wright family.

Australia’s only family-owned field day is the pinnacle of four decades of showcasing the diversity of primary industry, and rural communities, throughout south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales. “It’s a celebration of rural life with this year’s more extensive than ever,” says Wright. “It’s in my DNA.” Back then John Wright ran a hire company – Wright Hire – and was involved in a number of trade show-type expos, through northern NSW. Once a show for farm equipment traders and such, today’s field days are multimillion-dollar affairs with exhibits extending to agriculture tech innovations, rural health practitioners and paddock-to-plate chefs. The Southport School stalwart expects the May 16-18 event to generate more than the $67 million in sales from last’s year’s expo.

Primex drew record crowds after a long hiatus due to Covid-19 and floods.

Sunshine sale

Brisbane-based AAM has finalised the sale of its 14,074-hectare Sunshine Farms properties in the Lachlan Valley of New South Wales. Originally acquired by AAM in January 2020, Sunshine Farms was the first strategic land and development acquisition of the AAM Diversified Agriculture Fund, which has undertaken an extensive program of capital works to improve the asset over the past four years.

AAM managing director Garry Edwards says the portfolio of properties in central west New South Wales was purchased by a long-term investor in Australian farmland for an undisclosed amount, who would continue to operate the property with most of the existing staff staying on. AAM owns almost $900 million in Australian agricultural assets. It is understood the US Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America and College Retirement Equities Fund’s Nuveen Natural Capital, the biggest farmland investor in the world, has purchased the aggregation. “The new owners manage many large-scale agricultural assets, and we are confident they will continue to build on the legacy AAM has created in the region,” Edwards says. The Sunshine Farms properties have significant access to water through the Jemalong Irrigation Scheme.

Garry Edwards

Long drive

Keen golfers have taken community spirit directly from the greens to grassroot community groups, raising $60,000 as part of People First Bank’s much-loved annual charity golf day.

Seven community groups were announced as beneficiaries following the event at Toowoomba’s City Golf Club.

The golf day marked a major milestone for the longstanding event and the first held since Heritage Bank and People’s Choice merged to become one organisation, now known as People First Bank. Across its 26-year history, the event has raised more than $1.1 million and assisted around 130 charity and community groups. In keeping with People First Bank’s national presence, beneficiaries from the most recent event

include organisations from Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia.

CEO Peter Lock says the charity golf day was a fantastic example of the “people-centric” approach that differentiates member-owned banks from listed banks.

Heritage Bank and People's Choice CEO Peter Lock