This article is from page 52 of the 2007-08-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 52 JPG
AFTER all the excitement and razz- matazz of last years Irish and World Ploughing championships, prepara- tion are now well on the way for this year’s event.
Applications for exhibition space are reportedly flooding in to the Na- tional Ploughing Association offices in Athy in advance of this year event which takes place in Tullamore, from Tuesday, September 25, to Thursday 27
The championships will once again be one of the largest outdoor events held in Europe this year and organis- ers have concentrated on exceptional quality and diversification in their 60 acre trade arena this year with a huge
cross section of businesses being successful with their applications.
Government Departments, political parties, semi-state bodies, sporting organisations, hotels and education are just some of the businesses at- tending.
Financial institutes are also well represented with stockbrokers, 1in- vestment clubs and the Financial Regulator coming on board.
As in previous years health will have a strong presence at the cham- pionships with cholesterol and blood pressure checks from the Irish Blood Transfusion Board, the Irish Haemo- chromatosis Association and _ the Health Service Executive.
The National Office for Suicide Prevention will also be providing in-
formation on suicide prevention, an issue becoming increasingly com- mon in rural Ireland.
Renewable energy will have a big presence with wind turbines, bio- mass boilers fuelled by chicken litter, oats and barley. Solar panels, wood pellet stoves, science and engineer- ing stands will have you totally up to speed on the latest equipment and cost saving devices on the market.
The European Commission and the European Parliament will also be there to discuss the environmental challenges that exist in Europe, spe- cifically nature and climate change.
Northern Ireland departments will also have a presence with the De- partment of Agriculture and Rural Development and the Agri-Food and
Biosciences Institute.
The Road Safety Authority along with the Garda Road Safety Division will be carrying out seatbelt demon- strations for child car seats as well as free eyesight tests in conjunction with SpecSavers.
The ever popular overseas property exhibition returns this year, as does the fantastic Leader Food Village with its hand made chocolates, farm house cheeses, breads, cakes, honey and marmalades.
Leader Crafts are also making a welcome comeback with their mag- nificent displays that were so popular ETS more e
Tickets are now available by call- ing (059) 8625125 or for more infor- mation, visit Www.npa.ie.