Shepparton show to go ahead

“We may have to reduce some of our sections, it’s a bit of a challenge to meet social distancing requirements, we also have some concerns with our judges and stewards being of a high-risk age group,” she said.

The number of people on the grounds, temperature checks, recording entrants’ details and organising online tickets were all factors to be considered by the society.

“We certainly do want to have a show, the other societies have made a difficult decision to cancel,” she said.

“There’s no real assistance for agricultural societies and the only income is gate income.

“If we knew how many people we'd be allowed in October, it would make a huge difference.”

Numurkah A and P Society president Bev Patrick said the society made the decision to cancel the Numurkah Show earlier this week.

“The most important consideration was everyone’s health, 80 per cent of our judges, volunteers and competitors are over 70, so were in a vulnerable situation,” she said.

“Financially, you can’t ask sponsors for money this year because money is tight, and you would have to get a lot of people through the gate to cover all the costs.

“Side shows aren’t travelling, and as far as serving food goes — that’s all complicated.”

She said as a midweek show, the cancellation was disappointing for the older generation, who looked forward to attending the event.

The society will be looking for volunteers to help plan a bigger and better show for 2021.

The Nathalia Agricultural Society has also cancelled this year's show, but will host competitions online, covering most categories — including photography, writing and cooking.

Other cancelled shows include Benalla, Kerang, Kyabram, Mildura, Swan Hill, and Wangaratta, while the Cobram Agricultural Society is expected to make a decision next week.

For most of these shows, war has been the only other factor to cause cancellations.