Countdown to National Ploughing Championships begins

The countdown to the National Ploughing Championships in Ratheniska, Stradbally, Co Laois, at the end of September, has begun.

A promotional brochure for the event (Sept 24- 26), which was last held in the Ratheniska area 70 years ago, has just been launched by the National Ploughing Association and Bank of Ireland.

Sean Farrell, head of agriculture, Bank of Ireland business banking, who attended the launch, along with the association’s managing director Anna May McHugh, and chairman James Sutton, said the championships represent a very important sponsorship for the bank.

“We approved in excess of €500m in new and increased lending to the agri sector last year and we have ambitions to grow this figure in the current year,” he said.

The NPA association has also announced it is working in conjunction with Fáilte Ireland and Tourism Ireland to be part of the Gathering Ireland Initiative for 2013.

It said that exhibition space is at a premium at this stage and work will start shortly in laying out the site, which is being provided by host farmers David and Clive Carter, with neighbours providing additional land.

Ballacolla was the venue when the championships were held in Co Laois in 1995 and again in 2000 and 2002.