Victorian agricultural societies says a second year of cancelled events is having an impact

The Agricultural and Pastoral Society Grants Program was announced yesterday and will offer grants up to $10,000 for successful applicants.

In a statement, the government said the grants could be used for a range of purposes.

READ MORE: RASV confirms no regional show

Ballarat Agricultural & Pastoral Society made the decision to cancel last week.

Executive officer Elizabeth van Beek said there was an hour and a half long discussion, but ultimately it was decided the risk was too great.

"The more we looked at it the more we decided it was just too difficult with COVID," she said.

"At the end of the day it did come down to that fact that suppose we ran a show and they locked us down the week of the show, or they did lock down halfway through the show, what would that do?

"Financially for us, it's too risky."

The eleventh-hour cancellation of the Australian Sheep & Wool Show at Bendigo was an example of how quickly things could change.

The show was the major source of income for the society and cancelling for the second year was having an affect.

Other events that would normally hire the facilities were cancelling too, she said.

"We're looking at what can we do to bring money in," she said.

"We just need to be very, very careful with our finances.

"I'm sure there there are societies that are really struggling financially - we're not in that position but we still have to be really careful.

"Next year, if it turned around and it was like this year and we didn't have a show, it might be a different story."

The society received a $70,000 grant last year.

Any support would make a huge difference, she said.

"If we got funding it would be going towards just paying wages, paying the electricity bill, the rates, those sorts of things," she said.

"That's the money that's coming out every single week that can't stop."

Warracknabeal A & P Society secretary Judi Armstrong said the committee made the call to cancel when Victoria went back into lockdown.

"It would have been too gut wrenching to get to show day, especially after not having a show last year, to find out we couldn't have one this year," she said.

"I know everyone in town loves the show, it brings a lot of money to the town - our accommodation is full, people come from everywhere to go to it.

"But what would have happened if we'd had the show and then someone had got COVID from it?"

Local businesses that usually supported the show had also had a difficult 12 months, and it would have been a major blow if the event was cancelled after spending money on advertising and printing, she said.

Last year the society received a $10,000 grant from the state government and the society had also run raffles to fundraise.

But cancelling again would impact the society's bottom line and next year's event would likely be reduced as a result, she said.

The Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria announced in July that the Melbourne Royal Show would not be going ahead for the second consecutive year.

The society had hoped to hold a regional event for competitors but the situation in Shepparton and statewide lockdowns meant any hopes were dashed.

Chief executive Brad Jenkins said about 90 per cent of the RASV's annual income came from holding and hosting events.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the business and our ability to generate revenue streams," he said.

"Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was estimated that the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria annually provided $430 million in economic value to the state of Victoria, with the Melbourne Royal Show alone contributing $244 million."

He said the Melbourne Royal Show and the hundreds of ag shows and field days across Australia contributed almost $1 billion to the Australian economy each year.

The events were also important in bringing families and farmers together, building community spirit and helping bridge the divide between country and city, he said.

The RASV conducted a range of food and agricultural competitions for the different sectors, as well as food and beverage award programs, he said.

"Although highly valued by the relevant sectors, they are costly to run and the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria can only conduct these awards if there are sufficient commercial revenue streams, including those generated from a full Royal Show experience, such as from admission tickets, carnival rides, retail vendors, food and beverage etc," he said.

"Without commercial revenue streams, it's not financially viable for the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria to conduct the agricultural competitions without government support."