What do you get when you mix the very best Welsh livestock, fierce competition, hundreds of trade stands, tens of thousands of people, picturesque surroundings and a heatwave? The Royal Welsh Show 2016!
The principal function of the four day-long annual event is to showcase the cream of Welsh livestock as well as the high quality food and drink produced in Wales. It encompasses the wider spectrum of farming and rural life, bridging the gap between town and country. There is something to interest everyone with a kaleidoscopic range of activities including forestry, horticulture, crafts, countryside sports and a 12 hour programme of exciting entertainment.
Anyone who has been to the Royal Welsh Show in the past will be able to appreciate that the drive to the show is, in itself, something quite special. As we made our way across the Brecon Beacons – an area very much deserving of it’s National Park status – the fresh air and picturesque landscape almost envelops you, as you find yourself dreaming of one day owning a smallholding of your very own!
On what was set to be one of the hottest days of the year, my dreams were suddenly quashed when we found ourselves being directed into a ‘free park and ride’. Just thinking about the swathes of impatient people being packed into a bus, which was sure to feel more like an oven than a mode of transport, really did fill me with dread and as we parked the car, a little voice inside my head said, “this is going to be horrendous”. It was hot. Not ‘Wales-hot’, but ‘Spain-hot’. And everyone was about to be rammed onto a bus – all sticky sunscreen-slathered bodies and grizzly babies!
However – I am so pleased to say that my little voice was promptly proved wrong. A queue of buses awaited us and even though there was a swarm of people walking towards them, there were no uncomfortable queues and as we all filed onto the bus with ease, I realised that the Royal Welsh Show really is top class. Where we could easily have been left to our own devices, driving in circles around the little town of Builth Wells, avoiding precariously parked cars before abandoning our own through lack of parking places, the whole system was well thought out and incredibly well executed.
We made the trip to the Royal Welsh Show on Wednesday – traditionally the busiest day of the show as it’s the day when the magnificently beautiful Welsh cobs are judged in the main ring, drawing thousands of people to marvel at them. And as the gentleman on the tannoy said, they really do seem to bask in the attention, dancing around the arena with a real grace and elegance.
Even if you’re not in the slightest bit interested in farming or agriculture, these beautiful animals genuinely are sights to behold. As grandads raise their grandchildren into the air to get a better view, you come to realise that the Royal Welsh Show is something even the youngest visitors can appreciate. Gasps of “aren’t they beautiful” seemed to echo around us in unison – and the answer was of course, a resounding “yes”.
It wasn’t just the main arena which drew the crowds, however, as there seemed to be a real buzz wherever you went. We were particularly taken by the attention to detail shown on each of the machinery stands. It wasn’t a case of parking up the tractors and putting up a few flags. Each and every stand was picture perfect – having been dressed with colour coordinating flowers or decorated with trees and bark chippings. They really do put in a great deal of effort – as do the competitors in the floral and horticulture competitions.
We were really impressed by the Farmers’ Welsh Lavender stand too. As stockists of the brand, we know first-hand how effective their creams and balms are – and how popular they are with our customers. It’s no wonder when their product is so good and their branding is spot-on. Their stand was beautifully dressed and really stood out from the crowd. We were very happy to hear that despite the heat, they were having a good day and that trade had been doing well.
As stockists of their brandy and whisky liqueurs, we also paid a visit to the Celtic Spirit stand, which was in the ever-popular Food Hall. This is another must-visit section of the show – trust us, if you don’t go in, you really do miss out. There’s an abundance of free samples to try before you buy and in our opinion, it is impossible to leave without purchasing something! It was great to see the Welsh Lady Preserves stand so busy. We stock their lovely jams, curds, chutneys and conserves at our store in Neath, so we’ve probably already sampled more than our fair share of their delicious goods!
As always, the queue to get to the Snowdonia Cheese stand was three people deep. Thankfully, we stock four of their cheeses at our Neath store, so we didn’t have to join the scrum for samples!
Instead, we decided to treat ourselves to some very tasty salami from impeccably branded Charcutier and then had some very naughty (but very nice!) ice cream from Môn ar Lwy. All of the flavours had been renamed to reference the Welsh football team – which we thought was a really thoughtful, clever touch!
Having cooled down with some of Heartsease Farm‘s premium sparkling pressés, we were ready to face the heat outside, so we ventured to watch one of the sheep shearing & woolhandling competitions. The speed and accuracy of the shearers is really impressive and the competitions draw huge crowds throughout the day. It’s a win-win situation of course, as we’re pretty sure that with temperatures in the high 20’s, the sheep will have been very relieved to be rid of their winter coats!
One of our favourite stands of the whole show belonged to Wildlife Trusts Wales. The people on the stand were knowledgable, friendly and very passionate about the importance of protecting wildlife in Wales. Nature gives us the foundation of our economy, our energy system, our food and farming – and its health is intrinsically linked to our own. From watching bees and butterflies and absorbing the colours of plant life, to noticing the calming rustle of trees in the wind, nature gives us moments of inspiration and reflection and places we can escape to and relax in.
But despite all this, nature is fading away from our lives; 60% of the species we know about are in decline. Fewer than 10% of children regularly play in wild places. These are sad statistics and when faced with them in surroundings like the Royal Welsh Show, it really brings home how much we’d miss wildlife and nature if we allow it to disappear. There was a fantastic display to highlight how easy (and cheap!) it can be to encourage wildlife into your garden or outside space and we recommend that you take a look at their website to find out what you can do to help.
All in all, we had a fantastic day at the Royal Welsh Show 2016 – top class organisation, hard-fought competitions, very happy crowds and wonderful producers, makers and suppliers. If you don’t go on any other day trips in 2017, make sure you spend at least one day at the Royal Welsh Show. Given the opportunity, we’d stay for the full four days. Be prepared though – you are likely to find yourself going home with the desire to buy a farm, a tractor, a flock of sheep and some rare breed cattle. Now where did we put those business cards?…
