Australia's outbreak of avian influenza has forced the cancellation of Melbourne Royal Show's major poultry competition.
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Melbourne Royal executive general manager of agriculture Darren Keating said the decision to shelve the September event was made by the organisation's poultry committee last Wednesday.
"Due to the current avian influenza outbreak in Victoria, we have made the difficult decision to postpone the Melbourne Royal Poultry Competition for 2024," he said.
"This decision is based on guidance from Agriculture Victoria in consultation with the Victorian Poultry Fanciers Association, and our commitment to prioritising the health and safety of the Victorian poultry industry and our exhibitors.
"We look forward to welcoming the poultry community back when the Melbourne Royal Poultry Competition re-commences in the future."
In 2023, the competition attracted more than 1000 entries from 900 birds.
It means the September 2024 event will be without the likes of ducks, chickens, gease, and other poultry birds.
The competition has received entries from NSW, SA and Victoria in the past.
It comes as the outbreak of avian influenza has spread to Canberra, pushing the number of affected farms to 11 across Australia.
Customers at Woolworths have been limited to two cartons of eggs in parts of the country as the outbreak stifles supplies, while Coles introduced a similar policy earlier in June.
The Melbourne Royal Schools Poultry Competition, which had 40 schools entered this year, has also been cancelled, along with the Pat a Chook pen which had 10,000 people pat a chooks in 2023.
Victorian Poultry Fanciers Association chairman Kevin Smith said the organisation was supportive of Melbourne Royal Show's decision to exclude poultry from this year's event.
"It's obviously disappointing that the competition is not going ahead because it's a feature of our showing calendar, but it's understandable given avian influenza is about at the moment," he said.
"Our breeders converse some very rare heritage genetics that are irreplaceable.
"It's certainly very important to protect those genetics and we are really supportive of this decision because there's a balance of being disappointed about the decision but also understanding the basis on which it was made."
Bryce Eishold
Bryce is a senior journalist with Australian Community Media's Stock & Land where he reports on all aspects of agriculture. Bryce is also the president of the Rural Press Club of Victoria. Email Bryce at bryce.eishold@stockandland.com.au.
Bryce is a senior journalist with Australian Community Media's Stock & Land where he reports on all aspects of agriculture. Bryce is also the president of the Rural Press Club of Victoria. Email Bryce at bryce.eishold@stockandland.com.au.
