BIG EARNER ON SHOW IN JUNE

Many Brigg residents - me included - and some of our businesses make a point of visiting the annual Lincolnshire Show in June. It was sometimes held in Brigg decades ago but is now firmly established on the extensive and impressive showground just north of Lincoln, close to the A15. We plan to keep Brigg Blog followers informed of Show news as it comes our way...

Big business and small local companies are coming together to help Lincolnshire’s agricultural heritage and education to flourish.
They are all backing the annual County Show, organised by the Lincolnshire Agricultural Society to boost awareness of countryside matters, and the vital role that agriculture plays in the local economy.
It will be the 127th Show, the 52nd to be held at the Grange-de-Lings 200 acre site and the two-day event will take place on Wednesday 22nd and Thursday 23rd June.
Billed as Lincolnshire’s big day out, the Lincolnshire Show is an agricultural show, one of the few county shows to remain true to its heritage, and last year attracted more than 68,000 visitors and some 650 exhibitors – both numbers that the organisers hope to beat this year.
“The Show is for everyone living in the countryside, working in the countryside and those who enjoy the countryside,” explained the Show’s business development manager Laura Luty. “It’s really great that local businesses are keen to back us in this way. As a charity, it’s sponsorship like this which allows us to continue to develop the Show. As well as helping us to keep costs down, such as visitor prices, we also inject the sponsorship support into educational activities, such as our Schools’ Challenge, which encourages young people to get involved.”
he added: “Many of our sponsors come year after year, because they know it has a commercial value as well as supporting their place in our local community. We have had an excellent response so far but are still talking to companies that are active across Lincolnshire and the East Midlands region.”
Clydesdale Bank is once again the major sponsor for the Show, Langleys Solicitors and BBC Lincolnshire are jointly sponsoring the equine area, which attracts 2000 entries each year across show jumping, mountain and moorland ponies and ex racehorse classes.
Plans for this year’s Show will be announced soon, but organisers say visitors can be confident they will experience another exciting line-up at the renowned county event, with entertainment that will appeal to all tastes and ages.
As well as the show’s traditional agricultural theme – with events including pig racing, show-jumping, the spectacular Grand Parade of the best of the county’s livestock in the Clydesdale Bank Main Ring and the vintage to modern day agricultural machinery display – there will also be a host of other stalls and activities. Last year’s line up included medieval cooking and world-class jousting knights, through to advice on horticulture and sustainable living.
Sponsor of the Lincoln Red Cattle once again this year is The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation plc (AMC). Adrian Cawood, regional agricultural manager said: "AMC view Lincolnshire as one of the most important and foremost farming counties, and the Lincolnshire Show demonstrates the great commitment and enthusiasm towards farming within the county.
“When the opportunity arose three years ago to sponsor the native breed we were very happy to support it and are delighted to continue sponsor the Lincoln Reds again in 2011."

SHOW IS BIG EARNER
The Show is a big earner for Lincolnshire and research carried out last year showed that a massive £44m is being injected into the national economy thanks to the events held at the Lincolnshire Events Centre at the county’s Showground, attracting over 215,000 visitors a year.
More than 80 per cent of exhibitors return each year because of the amount of business they do at the Show and it is estimated that every £1 spent at the Show generates £20 in the local economy. The Show and other events at the Showground boost local hotels and B&Bs, creating demand for 18,400 overnight stays locally.
“The annual County Show is a major tourism attraction, alongside the city’s Cathedral and Castle,” said chief executive Mark Farmer, “It’s also a big earner for the economy, although it’s not just about the Show nowadays, as we have expanded the Showground site to become a major year-round regional conferencing and outdoor events centre.”

BACKING THIS YEAR'S SHOW
Jackie Strange - Shire Horses.
BBC Lincolnshire - Equine Ring
Brown Butlin, A trading arm of Farmacy PLC - Young Farmers’ Trailers
Woldmarsh, Farming agricultural buying group, Louth - Machinery Parade
Spaldings, Agricultural and groundcare replacement parts, tools and accessories -
Machinery Parade
Streets, UK Top 30 firm of accountants, Lincoln - Vice President’s Area
E Park & Sons Ltd, Potato supplier - Schools’ Challenge
Farmacy PLC, agronomy and environmental services to arable sector, Sleaford - Schools’ Challenge
Complete Print Group, Printing supplies - General support
Osborne Refrigerators - Double Harness Scurry
Brewin Dolphin Investment solutions, Lincoln - Parade of Hounds
McKinnells Solicitors, Lincoln - Courtyard
Langleys Solicitors, Lincoln - Ancaster Ring
Cydesdale Bank - Main Ring
Double M Catering, Catering business, Lincolnshire - General support
Lincolnshire Co-op - Lincoln Longwool
Lincolnshire Co-op - Commercial Beef
Savills - Agricultural and rural estate agency services, Lincoln - Roadside Signage
Swales Yorkshire Dales Ice Cream - British Charolais
Agricultural Mortgage Company Plc, Mortgage finance for land-based commercial businesses - Lincoln Red
Robert Bell & Co, Auctioneers and Land Agents, Horncastle, Coningsby, Woodhall Spa and Lincoln - Pig Interbreed Supreme Champion
Masons Chartered Surveyors, Property professionals, Louth - Interbreed Championships
Bang & Olufsen, Sound and vision products, Lincoln - Screens in the EPIC Centre
Saul Fairholm Chartered Accountants and Auditors, Lincoln - Grand Parade of Livestock.