The inaugural Riverina Harvest Festival was a huge success. Photo: Happy Wombat Hazelnuts Batlow Tumbarumba Growers Group.
What started as the seed of an idea – a harvest festival – has flourished beyond expectations, planting the roots for an annual tradition.
More than 1000 people attended the inaugural two-day Riverina Harvest Festival, held at Mates Gully and Wagga Wagga Beach on 1-2 March.
Festival organiser and ErinEarth garden manager Eltan Masten said he was amazed at how his initial idea grew into such a significant event.
“To be honest, I was numb. I was very happy, but I couldn’t really express the feelings because of all the work,” Eltan told Region.
“We sold out all our tickets [110] for the first day [conference], which was really surprising, and the dinner went really well. Everyone was happy … there were plenty of talks, speeches, and networking. We could have gone on for a lot longer.
“The next day, we had over 1000 people through the gates, which is great considering it was a little hot. Every person I spoke to, and all the stallholders, were talking about having it again next year.”
Eltan said it was amazing to have successfully kicked off the first harvest festival for the region.
“I want it to grow,” he said. ”I’d love for it to become something bigger and better while staying true to its purpose – helping producers, growers, community gardens, and the environment. I don’t know exactly how big it could get or what the future holds, but we’ll see.
“At the same time, if it becomes really successful and gains a lot of traction, I do worry about it becoming too commercial. I don’t want it to be taken over or bought out by big corporations – that’s not what it’s about.
“Ultimately, I want it to grow and serve a meaningful purpose for the community. Hopefully, fingers crossed, we’ll see where it goes. And if the people around me want to do it again, I’m more than willing to try.”
Eltan said the festival organisers had collected expressions of interest from producers to hold regional farm tours.
“It’s one of the ideas that could grow from this,” he said. ”We’ve collected expressions of interest from people keen to participate, so we need to discuss it as a group moving forward. We’ll look at the numbers and see if it’s feasible – if it is, we’ll give it a go.
“We’re still figuring out the best approach, whether we organise it ourselves from the ground up or collaborate with existing tour companies that already have the expertise and transport.
“There’s definitely public interest, and we know the growers are on board, so we’ll do our best to make it happen. I’m just not sure when yet, but hopefully soon.”
The Riverina Harvest Festival was one of the largest events held at Wagga Riverside Precinct, with about 40 stalls.
It aimed to connect people and promote food security by celebrating locally grown produce and supporting community gardens and producers.
The dream of hosting a harvest festival and supporting local producers in the region led Eltan to spearhead the event.
“I had the dream of running a harvest festival when I was working on Mates Gully farm that did paddock-to-plate,” he said.
“Each year, I saw the harvest and realised how much food is grown in this area by so many small farms and producers.”
The first spark of inspiration came after attending Sustain: The Australian Food Network’s urban agriculture festival conference in Sydney two years ago. Eltan returned home with the desire to host something similar in the Riverina, despite Sustain stepping back from the initial collaboration.
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