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In 1969, the first New Zealand Agricultural Fieldays was held at Hamilton’s Te Rapa Racecourse.

The Town and Country Fair, as it was known then, aimed to bring rural and urban audiences together to celebrate New Zealand’s farming industry and lifestyle and the contribution it makes to the community.

The Racecourse housed Fieldays in its first two years before the event moved to its current location at Mystery Creek in 1971.

Fieldays this year celebrated 50 years of showcasing agriculture and innovation to rural and urban audiences alike. Speaking at an event to mark the 50th, New Zealand National Fieldays Society CEO Peter Nation thanked the Waikato Racing Club for its collaboration in the early days and the sacrifices they made to help pull it off.

“The organisers at the first event in 1969 thought they’d have a couple of thousand people turn up. But on that day, it turned out to be more than 10,000 with cars parked all the way up Te Rapa Straight, which wasfarmland back then,” – Mr Nation said.

“I can only imagine the state of the racecourse after the first day with all those people trampling across it. We’re very grateful for that early relationship with the racing club, a relationship we’re still proud to have.”

Fast forwarding 50 years, and Fieldays is a staple on many agricultural calendars, with hundreds of thousands descending on Mystery Creek each June.

Hamilton City Council showed their supportfor the event and congratulated Fieldays on 50 years through collaborative projects that bought rural vibes to the city. A static display was installed in Garden Place to depict the agricultural heart Hamilton City has.

‘Warm Up to Fieldays’ was a partnership event between Sky City, Fieldays and the Council, that welcomed local businesses to network over a hot cup of vegetable soup and applaud the advancements Fieldays has achieved over the past 50 years.

The tenacity and perseverance from the original six farmers of the Fieldays Society has paved the way for Fieldays to become the premiere agricultural showcase it is today, contributing half a billion dollars to the global economy each year.

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