National Ploughing Championships launched in Co Offaly

The countdown is on for the return of Europe’s largest outdoor event involving prize-winning animals, millions of euro worth of high-tech farm machinery and the smell of fresh brown bread.

The National Ploughing Championships, better known as the ploughing, is expected to draw up to 300,000 visitors to Screggan in Co Offaly across three days from 16 – 18 September.

This year’s launch mixed the traditional with the high-tech.

It featured ponies and sheep alongside new tractors and cutting-edge farm equipment.

The livestock section will likely be a major draw next month, featuring the Irish Aberdeen-Angus All-Ireland Finals, the Shorthorn Calf Competition and the Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition.

There will also be a Screggan bake off, with eight finalists competing in the National Brown Bread Baking Competition.

Various sectors of the food chain will be represented from producer to retailer, artisan foods, craft beers and celebrity chefs.

The ploughing championships will again include the so-called ‘Dome’ & ‘Hub’ marquees, creating the largest retail pop-up in the country.

Of course there will also be plenty of actual ploughing.

The event’s organisers said the National Championships Ploughing Stakes has drawn a particularly strong programme this year – attracting entries from all over Ireland and Northern Ireland, with more than 350 competitors taking part.

NPA Managing Director Anna May McHugh said with just a few weeks to go, “preparations are in full swing as this green field transforms into the bustling hub of the National Ploughing Championships”.

She said the event showcases “the very best of Ireland, uniting rural and urban communities for three days of country living, innovation, and enterprise”.

“It’s always a race against the clock, but the result is a one-of-a-kind celebration,” she added.

Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon, who was guest of honour at the launch, said the National Ploughing Championships “showcase all that is good about Ireland’s agricultural sector”.