Gunnedah

Gunnedah ( /ˈɡʌnədɑː/) is a town and Local government area (see Gunnedah Shire) in north-eastern New South Wales, Australia. 12 007 people lived in the town of Gunnedah in 2006 (ABS 2011), including 931 indigenous people (12.3%).

Gunnedah is located on the Oxley and Kamilaroi Highways providing road links to the state capital Sydney at a distance of 475 kilometres (295 mi) and the nearest regional centre Tamworth is 75 kilometres (47 mi). It is also linked to Sydney by rail. The town is served by the daily Countrylink Xplorer service between Sydney and Moree.

The major industry is agriculture, with 80% of the shire area devoted to farming. Gunnedah's primary exports are cotton, coal, beef, lamb and pork, and cereal and oilseed grains. Gunnedah is also home to AgQuip, Australia's largest annual exhibition of agricultural equipment.

It claims the title "Koala Capital of World". A title also claimed by the Port Stephens area north of Newcastle and Port Macquarie, whose local koala population has led to the development of a specialised koala hospital.