THE Agribusiness Council of Australia will host its inaugural National Feast in Canberra on Sunday – an event designed to draw attention to the importance of agriculture in feeding Australians and an additional 60 million people in other nations around the world.

Governor general Sir Peter Cosgrove will join a group of federal politicians from both sides of the chamber, national agribusiness professionals and international ambassadors at the event.

The Agribusiness Council says the National Feast seeks to publicly recognise people involved in key aspects of agribusiness production, processing and value chain logistics, and to showcase high quality Australian produce to the invited audience. The event will feature a uniquely Australian dinner prepared at Government House by Australia’s only Indigenous hatted chef, Clayton Donovan.

“The National Feast acknowledges everyone involved in preparing and bringing food to the table; the producers, transporters, wholesalers, retailers, processors, chefs, cooks, and many more,” ACA’s executive chair, Roy Duncanson said.

“It celebrates the entire food logistics system without which most cities simply could not survive,” he said. “It is the depth and breadth of the agribusiness industry that keeps us all alive, not only those that grow or catch it.”

Sunday was specifically chosen for the event, being the winter solstice – the shortest day of the year.

Since ancient times, the winter solstice was the last feast before winter truly sets in, and when most livestock were slaughtered so they didn’t have to be maintained during a long, hard winter. The solstice is also associated with a time of new beginnings.

“The ACA envisions that the National Feast will grow into an annual event celebrated by all Australians,” Mr Duncanson said. “It’s a way to regularly recognise that Australia’s people produce a bounty of food across a diverse country. The ACA is seeking to regularly reignite the connections between those that produce food and those that consume it, by celebrating all involved.”

“ACA invites all Australians to adopt and adapt the National Feast and make it a yearly excuse to celebrate our nation’s abundant, good quality fare,” Mr Duncanson said.

“Global demand for Australian food has never been stronger, due to our international reputation for food quality, food safety, and the industry’s ability to process and distribute globally. What we all need to do now is make things easier and more profitable along the whole agribusiness supply chain,” he said.