It might have looked like a harmless sweet potato, but Malcolm Turnbull knew better.
The prime minister stared political death in the face on Thursday and lived to tell the tale, declining to munch on the raw vegetable as he toured a sweet potato farm in central Queensland.
He was keen to avoid the same fate as his predecessor Tony Abbott, who became the butt of many jokes when he bit into a raw onion, skins and all, last year.
"Want to have a bite, PM," a crowd member taunted as Mr Turnbull inspected the produce.
But his deputy stepped in to protect him.
"You know what eating that is called?" Barnaby Joyce chimed in.
"A possible end to your political career."
It wasn't the first time Mr Turnbull had to contend with the ghost of Mr Abbott during his visit to Rockhampton on Thursday, where he visited the Paradise Lagoons cattle farm.
Mr Abbott visited the farm last year where he unveiled a bust bearing his name - dedicated to the farm's late owner Graeme Acton - just two months before being deposed by Mr Turnbull.
Mr Turnbull learned the hard way that it's never a good idea to work with children or animals.
The cattle behaved but four-year-old twins Orlando and Presley Acton were less than impressed about being forced to pose for photos with the prime minister.
"This is so silly," Presley told AAP, tugging at his straw cowboy hat.
Orlando wasn't happy about the media attention either.
"I was scared because those lights were getting in my eyes."
Mr Turnbull visited the marginal seat of Capricornia to announce $150 million for water projects in Queensland, including $130 million to construct the Rookwood Weir, which would service Rockhampton if the business case meets requirements.
Capricornia is held by coalition MP Michelle Landry with a wafer-thin margin of 0.8 per cent.
Mr Turnbull told the farm's owners Tom and Tory Acton about his own cattle and sheep operation in the Hunter Valley.
"It's not on your scale, we brand about 700-plus calves a year."
The prime minister also threw in a compliment for his deputy, crediting him for strong cattle prices as Mr Joyce comes under fire for linking Labor's 2011 live cattle export halt to an influx of asylum seekers.
Share
