The 192nd annual Kingston Fall Fair is kicking off at the Memorial Centre this Thursday, a tradition since 1830 that is being presented by the Kingston & District Agricultural Society.
The event features yearly entertainment favourites like the Monster Truck Madness, the FMX Motorcycle Thrill Show and demolition derbies, and will be littered with food, drink, and local agricultural business kiosks.
Ultimately the event acts as an agricultural showcase, and fair board President Yvonne Compton says it provides a good opportunity to educate people in the city on where their food comes from and the work that it takes.
Located very accessibly downtown at the Memorial Centre, Compton says the location helps keep it popular, and that it’s important for city dwellers to have an understanding of agriculture.
“City kids don’t get to see this stuff, like where’s the city kid get to see a barn full of Holstein cows or, you know, ten pens full of the pigs,” Compton said.
“They don’t understand agriculture because they don’t think about it… I don’t think there’s much education maybe in the school curriculum on those points.”
Compton says in light of that, the Kingston & District Agricultural Society likes to think of this fair as an educational opportunity, and potentially a way to inspire a growing need in Canada: a new crop of farmers.
“We like to think that we’re educating people on what farmers do and why these animals are here,” Compton said.
“Maybe we’ll pick up some interest so some of those kids might become farmers or go into some sort of agribusiness… farmers are an aging population, not a lot of new ones coming in.”
Attendees will be introduced to the work involved in trades like dairy farming or beef cattle farming, and Gardening Kingston will be providing an educational workshop teaching kids where certain foods that they may eat every day come from as well as some education on how to grow your own food in the space that you have.
The event is also bringing back it’s Country Singing Showdown, and after sifting through over 40 auditions there will be 8 finalists in each of the 12-18 and 18 and over categories, while kids under 12 have a category of their own for the first time.
Daily tickets are $10 for those over 17, $5 for kids under 17 and free for kids younger than 5.
A full weekend pass can also be purchased for $30, and those who want to make use of the fair rides will have to purchase a $40 wristband in addition.
