The amount of business conducted at Riverlea’s spring show demonstrated a buoyant mood in farming, despite the current economic climate.

About 2,000 people flocked to Carmarthenshire showground in Nantyci and there were encouraging signs that agriculture is not buckling under the pressure of the recession just yet.

Riverlea director Mike Hill said: “Some serious business was done on the day, reflecting a generally buoyant mood in farming which was encouraging.

“But there is another side to this show, which is that by virtue of the numbers attending it has become a great social gathering as well, and that’s what creates a unique ‘mini Smithfield’ atmosphere, which may be a bit of an out-of-date description but still rings true.

“The formula for success for Riverlea centres around its ability to show a wide variety of machinery, from a simple yard scraper or chain harrow to a giant 3000 gallon slurry tanker or top of the range 830hp Jaguar forage harvester.

“With a comprehensive lineup of Claas McCormick tractors, there was a serious selection of green and red horsepower on show as well.”

There were 40 trade stands at the show, including Riverlea’s own construction equipment and horticultural stands, as well as a number of organisations such as Farming Connect, the Dairy and Grassland Development Centres, the Environment Agency, FUW, Coleg Sir Gar and the South West Wales Machinery Ring.

This year’s raffle raised £2,000 for the Nuffield Farming Scholarship Trust, which sponsors young farmers to travel abroad on projects, and the breast cancer care fund at Withybush Hospital, Haverfordwest.