Fairy floss, dodgem cars, show bags and dagwood dogs are just some of the ingredients needed for a good time at the Adelaide Showground.

September means showtime and this year’s Royal Adelaide Show is promising all the favourites.

Half a million people visit the show every year – one third of the state’s population – making it South Australia’s largest event. It also generates more than $193 million for our economy every year.

But on top of all the usual fun to be had, be sure to choose SA where you can.

Swing an SA show bag over your arm (the Gourmet Goodie Bag, Robern Menz and Charlesworth Nuts are just a few), slurp on a Fleurieu Milk milkshake or spin a yarn with a farmer in the livestock pavilions.

The 2018 Royal Adelaide Show is on from August 31 until September 9. Here are a few ways to support local in-between all those hotdogs and ferris wheel rides.

The Cup & Saucer ride is one for those after a tamer thrill. Photo by John Kruger.

Golden North ice cream
Think you can smash a one litre tub of ice cream in one minute and 53 seconds? That’s the finish time of last year’s winner of the Golden North ice cream eating competition.

We challenge you to take it to the next level.

The contest is held daily from 1.30 – 5.30pm. There are prizes to be won and tubs to be emptied.

Have a yarn with a farmer
Visit the livestock pavilions to see farm animals big and small laze about before being scrubbed up for judging.

Some of our livestock showers are farmers and stud owners who have travelled from regional areas far and wide in hope of scoring a champion’s ribbon.

Some farming families even camp out overnight at the showground throughout the duration of the event ensuring their animals are fed, watered and looked after!

Once the show is over, be sure to keep local farmers in mind when choosing local dairy, pork and other meat and animal products at the shops.

Grab a Gourmet Goodie Bag
The Gourmet Goodie Bag is full of SA goodies, including offers from Brand South Australia’s new look marketplace, Shop South Australia, launching next week.

In the goodie bag you’ll score Haigh’s Chocolates, Bickfords juice, MOO yoghurt, Fruchocs and much more!

The Gourmet Goodie Bag features a selection of local sweets, nibbles, vouchers and treats.

Get a milk moustache
More than 9000 milkshakes and dairy treats are sold from the milk bar in the Dairy Food Hall every year.

Give our local dairy farmers a nod by sampling dairy products from a range of SA based businesses including Fleurieu Milk, Golden North and B-d Farm at Paris Creek.

Taste the best of SA
The Foodland Pavilion is where the good stuff is at, and by good stuff we mean food.

Quality products grown and produced across the state will be showcased here including wines, baked goods, honey, condiments, olives and smallgoods.

Free olive oil tastings and education sessions, as well as beer and cider sessions will go ahead, allowing industry experts to share their secrets.

Photo: RAHSSA

Look for I Choose SA and the State Brand
Make a competition of it – how many State Brands and I Choose SA logos can you spot? Many local stallholders and producers will be displaying the messaging.

And remember, if you’re snapping something South Australian on social media, use the #ichoosesa hashtag!

Cheer on your fellow South Aussies
Whether it’s the strength of a woodchopper or the intelligence of man’s best friend in the sheepdog trials, competition is rife at the show.

The State Young Farmer Challenge is also one to watch, with our cleverest young people taking on a number of rural challenges including throwing a fleece, rolling and loading a wool bale, setting up an irrigation sprinkler system and an electric fence.

These piglets are almost too cute to handle. Photo: RAHSSA

Royal Adelaide Show fun facts

• The Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of SA will stage its 243rd show in 2018, a world record.
• Nearly 35,000 cappuccinos, 70,000 buckets of hot chips and more than 12,000 donuts are devoured at the show every year.
• More than 9000 milkshakes and dairy treats are sold from the milk bar in the Dairy Food Hall.
• More than 3000 poultry eggs are laid during the event and are all donated to the Salvation Army.
• The Country Women’s Association (CWA) bakes more than 12,000 scones during the show.

Visit I Choose SA to meet the people building business and industry in SA, and to find out how your choices make a difference to our state.

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