43rd Fair Showcases Agriculture, Food, and Local Festivities
The trade show featuring goods, tractors, and agricultural equipment, along with quality food and wine, has closed its section dedicated to these exhibits. The 43rd edition of the fair continues with new events up until today, Wednesday the 17th, which marks the feast day of S. Antonio Abate.
Tomorrow, in fact, the «S. Antonio» festival takes place, revolving around two main moments: the traditional blessing of animals on the porch of the 17th-century S. Antonio church and the competition for the best «chisol», a traditional winter sweet.
Festival Moments and Participation
The first event is at 4:00 p.m., when hundreds of residents from Lonate Pozzolo and surrounding municipalities will fill the churchyard with their animals: cats, dogs, various birds, as well as hamsters and geese.
After the blessing by the parish priest, everyone will move, as usual, to the nearby town square, where awards will be given for the most characteristic animals.
In the afternoon, «chisoi» participating in the same-named contest can be delivered to the Municipality. The goal is to achieve the best possible result using the original recipe of the sweet, which includes «poor» ingredients such as water, white flour, eggs, and sugar.
Highlight and Awards
In the evening (at 8:30 p.m.), the festival will conclude with a celebration in Piazza Martiri della Libertà, featuring awards for the best chisoi and winners of the shop window contest reserved for merchants.
During the Christmas holidays, the «Vote for the Shop Window» contest was held, promoted by the Councillor for Commerce Paolo Marcoli and the Merchants Association.
The contest involved voting, via a form, for the best decorated shop window. By expressing their preference, customers received a numbered ticket to participate in a prize draw for shopping vouchers.
Results and Innovations of the Fair
The 43rd edition of the first fair of the year concludes successfully. Credit goes to the Fiera Committee, composed of Morando Perini, Stefano Barovelli (director), Gabriele Mutti, Luigi Dossi, Pietro Crescini, Carla Tosi, Stefano Formenti, Franco Ferrari, Renato Roberti, and Davide Bollani.
«Visitor numbers exceeded our expectations», states Mayor Perini. The new features introduced have been well received, and the cultural initiatives organized by Culture Councillor Alessandra Fontana also garnered positive feedback.
The proposal of a menu based on products derived from pork will continue until the end of the month in the 9 participating restaurants within the eno-gastronomic circuit.