One Nation leader, Pauline Hanson, has been picked to open one of Australia’s biggest farm shows next month, drawing criticism that the “polarising” figure will shift attention from the needs of the agriculture sector “towards national political controversy.”
Organisers of the Henty Machinery Fields Days said Senator Hanson would open its annual gathering in the southern NSW town of Henty. The three-day event opens September 22.
“The Henty Machinery Field Days has long been recognised as a platform where industry, innovation and regional communities come together,” said Belinda Anderson, chief executive of the event, in a statement.
“We are delighted Senator Hanson has accepted our invitation to officially open the 2026 event and look forward to welcoming her to Henty,” she said, adding the One Nation’s leader’s attendance “highlighted the importance” of the show as “one of the nation’s largest and most influential agribusiness events.”
Graham Strong, a sheep farmer at Boree Creek, about an hour’s drive from Henty, said he had written to Ms Anderson, the board and chair of the Henty event to demand a review of the choice of Hanson to open the exhibition, one of the biggest ag trade shows in the nation.
