POULTRY keepers left disappointed after this year’s Royal Highland Show poultry section was cancelled, due to concerns over spreading avian influenza, were angered to discover non-competitive live poultry exhibits all over the Ingliston site.
Longtime exhibitor Hazel Dickson, of Carluke, contacted The Scottish Farmer to express her disappointment at this contradictory show policy: “What’s become very obvious to many this week is that there was plenty of poultry and waterfowl at various points around the Highland Show, but just no competitive poultry classes, which does seem to back up the increasing, but longstanding, concern, that many poultry exhibitors had, that the RHASS Livestock and Competitions team just doesn’t want competitive poultry.
“There was a small, weak and disappointing commercial poultry demo in the poultry tent, and ducks in the countryside area, being worked by collies, while there were layers in the trade stands and hatching eggs and hicks in the incubator trade stand.”
She added: “This whole situation has resulted in the poultry exhibitors being disenchanted and disillusioned, because the show had no representation of pure or rare breed poultry and waterfowl in attendance. There is also a wider concern that the poultry tent at the Highland is indicative of a wider move to prioritising commercial trade stands, rather than supporting or encouraging specialised or quality livestock and competition exhibitors.
The RHASS was contacted for comment about the issue, but did not provide a response.