This year has lost two of its major sheep events with the announcement that the Australian Sheep & Wool Show (ASWS) and Sheepvention have been cancelled.
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The ASWS was slated for Bendigo July 17 to 19 and Sheepvention in Hamilton on August 2 to 4.
Organisers of each event said the decision to cancel was devastating but uncertainty over the coronavirus, Covid-19, restrictions were considered too great.
They vowed to continue to promote their stakeholders as well as plan for 2021.
Australian Sheep Breeders Association president, Rob McCartney said the executive had hoped that the situation would improve but the last week has shown that any hope of a mass gathering in July this year would be impossible.
"The health and safety of our members, volunteers, exhibitors, sponsors, suppliers and visitors is paramount and we will now begin planning for the 2021 event," he said.
"The cancellation will affect all our stakeholders and also a large part of the Bendigo community as our event brings millions of dollars into the Bendigo economy," he said.
The Hamilton Pastoral and Agricultural Society executive decided it was impossible to continue planning for, and contributing financially to, an event that was unlikely to be held.
In a statement the executive said it was "extremely disappointed to inform our members, exhibitors, sponsors, suppliers and attendees that Sheepvention is cancelled for 2020".
It said the amount of temporary infrastructure required for Sheepvention would have needed assurances that the mass gathering bans and closure of state borders would be lifted by the end of June.
"This confirmation would have been required by the end of this month. This isn't possible given the orders that have been put in place by State and Federal Governments," according to the committee.
Both organisation pledged to contact their stakeholders including sponsors and stall holders to inform them of the decision and would be investigating alternative methods of promotion.
A major part of each event are ram sales and the organisers were also looking to support sheep breeders.
The organisers also emphasised that the cancellation would also provide a two-year planning period to return the events in 2021.
The ASWS and Hamilton P & A said members that had purchased membership for 2020 will have their membership carried over for next year and urged any other members to renew their membership for what would be a two year period.
