Mallee farming town, Pinnaroo, has been crowned the 2020 Ag Town of the Year during last night’s Regional Showcase event at O’Leary Walker Wines in Clare.

Pinnaroo finished ahead of four other finalists – Kimba, Parndana, Kapunda and Woodside – to be crowned South Australia’s top agriculture town.

Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development David Basham congratulated the small farming town on being named Ag Town of the Year for 2020.

“Well done to the farming sector, the community and all involved in making Pinnaroo such a diverse and innovative town,” said Minister Basham.

“The extensive process to crown Pinnaroo as South Australia’s Ag Town involved 70 town nominations, more than 5,000 public votes and visits to the five finalist towns by our independent judging panel.

“As a farmer said during the judges’ visit, ‘Pinnaroo has got your back’ and I think that really captures the spirit of this small town and the importance of agriculture to its economy.

“The Ag Town of the Year award recognises towns that demonstrate excellence in agriculture – encouraging growth in our primary industries and demonstrating leadership in this sector.

“I know the judging panel had a difficult time making this decision, with each of the finalist towns being more than just worthy contenders. All the towns are excelling in agricultural practices, displaying incredible community spirit and resilience, and are committed to developing their region.

“South Australia is blessed with a vibrant primary industries and agribusiness sector overall, that generated $14.1 billion in revenue in 2019–20 and created tens of thousands of jobs.”

Member for Hammond Adrian Pederick congratulated the whole Pinnaroo community on winning the Ag Town of the Year Award.

“Agriculture can be a testing industry especially with some of the recent poor seasons. It’s good to have had a handy cropping season last year, stock prices up and a huge horticulture industry in the Pinnaroo region adding to the mix,” Mr Pederick said.

“Pinnaroo certainly deserves this award especially in relation to operating with the challenges of a cross-border community in dealing with COVID-19. This award highlights the legendary resilience of the Mallee. Congratulations Pinnaroo.”

There were also six other awards presented to a range of regional organisations, businesses and initiatives as part of the 2020 Regional Showcase. The winners were:

• Regional Resilience Award: Imagine Uraidla
• Community Empowerment Award: Phil Marshall
• Meaningful Connections Award: Macclesfield’s Young at Heart Club
• AgTech Award: Trust Provenance
• Lifelong Learning Award: EP Analysis
• People’s Choice Award: Merv Lehmann of Robertstown General Store
  “The Regional Showcase is a chance for our whole community to celebrate South Australia’s regional communities and consider the importance that regions play in all our lives,” Minister Basham said.
  “It has been a challenging time for the whole community, as clearly demonstrated by the fact this event had to be postponed from November due to COVID-19.
  The Regional Showcase was held in partnership with Solstice Media, with the public invited to vote on the People’s Choice Award from the 30 shortlisted regional stories.
  For more information on the Regional Showcase Award winners visit https://solsticemedia.com.au/regional-showcase/ and for more information on AgTown, visit http://www.agtown.com.au