From a Mallee town embracing farming families from across the globe to an Eyre Peninsula community that banded together to create its very own “big thing”, SA’s regional towns are doing extraordinary things. Nominations are now open for the 2026 Agricultural Town of the Year – and your favourite deserves a shot.
Ever enjoyed some Coonawarra red, or tucked into oysters from Coffin Bay? Grabbed a bag of Riverland oranges at the supermarket, or poured milk from Mount Compass over your cereal this morning?
Someone in a regional SA town made that happen – and nominations are now open to give them the recognition they deserve.
The 2026 South Australian Agricultural Town of the Year – an initiative of the Department of Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) delivered in partnership with InDaily – is looking for its next winner. Anyone can nominate, it takes minutes, and for the towns involved it means far more than a trophy. Just make sure you do it before Wednesday 6 May.
Why it matters right now
SA’s regional communities have had a tough run – prolonged dry conditions, rising fuel and input costs, and ongoing pressures that stack up fast in small economies. Through all of it, these towns have kept producing the food and drink that ends up on tables across the state.
Nominating your favourite town means recognition, community pride, and a spotlight on the people doing the hard work that most of us never see.
The towns that have gone before
Lameroo (2025)
Nicole McMahon’s family have been farming the Lameroo region since the 1920s – and four generations in, she’s as invested in the community as she is in the land. When Lameroo took out the 2025 title, she wasn’t surprised the judges were impressed.
“When they came, we showed them everything – the school, the farms, the new potato packaging facility, the volunteer projects,” Nicole says. “We thought we’d overwhelmed them, but it’s amazing to be recognised for all the work that’s happening here.”
Nicole chairs Lameroo Forward Incorporated, the town’s volunteer-driven progress group, which has delivered projects like the twin silo murals that now mark Lameroo’s skyline.
“That fundraising alone took a couple of years,” she says. “Most of the money came from local businesses and community donations. It just shows how much people here care. We work on projects that help Lameroo thrive, not just survive.”
Fellow farmer Lou Flohr, who grows high-quality grain in some of the state’s toughest conditions near the Mallee town, was just as thrilled when Lameroo was named SA’s 2025 Ag Town of the Year.
“We live in a low-rainfall region on a low-rainfall continent and we do so much with what we get,” Lou says. “It’s great to show all the innovation and land-care practices we do – it’s really humbling to be recognised for that.”
Another secret to Lameroo’s success is embracing the new families – many from South Africa and the Philippines – who have been settling there in growing numbers. The school is now the only one in Australia to offer Afrikaans as a language. “It’s a great place for new families to connect,” Lou says of the playgroup she runs. “We get people moving here with no English, so it becomes a safe space where they can practise socially and their kids can start to settle in before school.”
Penola (2024)
On his drive to school each morning through the Coonawarra, Cory O’Connor – Wattle Range Council’s Young Citizen of the Year – passes pine plantations, paddocks full of cows and sheep, and then vineyards. “It’s a reminder of just how much diverse agriculture we have here, all in one small area,” he says.
Cory teaches agriculture at Penola High School – and he’s not going anywhere. “I’ve had a whole lot of job offers from city schools since I set up the agricultural program here, but this is where I want to be, because the bunch of kids we have here is so fantastic.”
The program he built from scratch started with a disused paddock and a chicken coop. Three years later, the school farm runs cattle, sheep, goats, chickens, fish and a cropping plot, enrolments have risen 22 per cent, and last year a team of 15 students returned from the Royal Adelaide Show with awards in 37 events – most of them female, many now eyeing careers in agronomy, ag science and rural real estate.
When Penola took out the 2024 title, Cory knew exactly what it meant. “It’s about the future we’re building for these kids, the pathways we’re creating for them to see a career in agriculture. It’s the community’s dedication that makes this town what it is.”
Wudinna (2023)
Nat Phillips was born in Wudinna, left for Adelaide to study, and came back. She knows exactly why. “Wudinna’s like a magnet,” she says. “People might go away for a while, but they almost always come back. It’s a place where a lot of young families are choosing to live for its relaxed lifestyle.”
It’s not hard to see the appeal. This Eyre Peninsula town of around 600 people punches well above its weight – not just in farming, but in research and tourism too. Farmer-owned AIR EP leads low rainfall research and development from here, and the community has created its very own “big thing” – a 70-tonne Australian Farmer granite sculpture funded by locals – while Mount Wudinna, one of Australia’s largest granite monoliths, draws visitors to the region.
The Agricultural Town of the Year win “caused a lot of excitement and feeling” in the community, Nat says – and for the young locals who helped put together the winning submission, it was something else entirely. “It was great that they had that opportunity, and that they got to be part of it.”
Nominate your town now
Anyone can nominate – yes, even city folk. Whether you grew up there, holiday there every summer, or just know it deserves more recognition than it gets, your nomination counts.
Nominating is free and takes minutes online. Nominated towns move through to a public vote, then a top 10 is announced, submissions assessed, and finalists visited by a judging panel.
The winner is announced at the Regional Showcase Awards in November and receives a community celebration event, town entrance signage, a trophy and a double-page spread in SALIFE magazine.
Nominations close Wednesday, 6 May.
For more information and to nominate your town, click here.
