Celebrate the humble spud at Trentham festival

POTATOES and everything about them will be celebrated again when The Great Trentham Spudfest returns for two days of events and activities over the first weekend in May.

The festival, which brings together local potato growers, artisans, music, food vendors and history, is scheduled for 3 and 4 May.

It will be the 17th iteration of the community event, which habitually attracts more than 8000 people and is staged throughout Trentham and surrounds.

This year’s fest will feature the inaugural Digging Deep: Cooks in Conversation event on the Sunday morning featuring award-winning cookbook author and television host Alice Zaslavsky, local chefs Tony Tan and Liam Downes, and moderator Jacinta Parsons at The Mechanics Trentham.

Festival coordinator Kye Theobald said Spudfest remains a largely free event, but a selection of specially curated activities will be ticketed.

“On Saturday, our legendary street fair is held in the heart of Trentham town, with four main precincts packed full of spud food, fresh regional produce, our local makers market, live music, and of course the fabulous Spud Olympics,” Ms Theobald said.

“It’s a great carnival atmosphere. And if you want to buy a bag full of famous Trentham spuds, Saturday is the day all our growers are in town.”

 

Other events on Saturday will include a bus tour of heritage-protected Spud Huts, the Celtic-themed Spudfest Ceilidh, and a four-course dinner curated by local chef, author and farmer Annie Smithers at her Du Fermier restaurant.

“Sunday is our Discovery Day, delivering the perfect energy shift from day one,” Ms Theobald said.

That day’s schedule will include the ‘in conversation’ event, a gnocchi-making class at Hotel Trentham, the Farm Gate Trail, tours of local farms, and The Great Spud Scavenger Hunt.

Trentham Town Square will transform into the Spud Hub, with freshly harvested potatoes on sale, horse and cart rides, guided historic walking tours and more.

Hepburn Shire mayor Cr Don Henderson said the spudfest is one of the region’s most celebrated family events, and the Shire is proud to support it.

“A true reflection of our region’s rich agricultural heritage, the event honours the hard work of our local farmers and brings together people to share in the fun, food and festivities,” he said.

More information, including ticketing details, is available at trenthamspudfest.org.au .