Archive - Tuesday, 16 April 2002


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Ruling threat to small shows

Pembrokeshires small agricultural shows could be homeless this summer because of new biosecurity rules unveiled this week.

DEFRA is banning cattle and sheep from grazing on land earmarked for shows 28 days before and after the event.

Farmers host the majority of shows on their pasture land but they may be unable to sacrifice two months worth of grazing.

The organisers of Nevern Show are the first to confirm that the event will go ahead as planned at Llwyngwair Farm, Newport.

But it is early days for others. Pembroke Show is hosted at Windsor Farm, Lamphey, and the committee will meet in the next month to discuss the implications of the DEFRA regulations.

Committee member and cattle steward Roger Minchin is keen for the show to go ahead, but the ultimate decision lies with the farmer.

The new rules and regulations are going to make life difficult and there are people who will say it is not worth it, he said. Personally, I want the show to continue but we will all have to meet to decide how we could operate it within these regulations.

Mr Minchin, of Newton Farm, Manorbier, stresses the importance of shows to rural communities: They keep the wheels of the countryside turning.

Pembroke, together with every show in Pembrokeshire, will have to be licensed and each must have a biosecurity officer to ensure that the conditions are followed.

Cattle and pigs can be exhibited from the start of the show season, but sheep and goats will have to wait until mid-May, provided that foot and mouth does not re-emerge during lambing.

Exhibitors must also comply with biosecurity rules. Animals cannot be moved for 20 days before a show, but after their first move they can be taken from show to show without triggering the 20-day standstill rule.

Food and Farming Minister Lord Whitty, who unveiled details of the licensing regime on Thursday, said: The return of livestock at agricultural shows is a key step in the move towards returning the countryside to more normal conditions.