Key figures from across the UK’s agricultural showing scene are celebrating the success and resilience of their showcase events at the home of the Great Yorkshire Show in Harrogate.

The Association of Show and Agricultural Organisations (ASAO) has brought together members from more than 60 Societies and Associations from across the home nations for its annual conference at The Pavilions of Harrogate at the Great Yorkshire Showground on Friday 7 – Saturday 8 November.

ASAO patron Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Edinburgh joined the Conference virtually and praised agricultural shows for being “the heart and soul of the countryside”.

ASAO Secretary Paul Hooper said: “The Annual Conference is held in various locations around the country each autumn. It brings all of those involved in the industry from organisers based at home to those who are based at offices with a team of colleagues – from venues which are rented to sites that operate throughout the year – all with the same problems on various scales – one family who work together to educate and entertain over 6.5 million of the great British public each year.”

It was Paul’s final Conference as ASAO Secretary. Paul, whose roles with agricultural shows have also included Society Secretary for Royal Bath and West Show, has served the ASAO for the last 30 years and steps down at the end of 2025.

Paul’s successor, Jenna Payne, takes up the post of ASAO Chief Executive at the end of the year, having previously been Show Secretary of Stithians Show, the largest one-day show in Cornwall. Jenna is a great advocate for animal welfare, working as a veterinary chiropractor.

Jenna said: “What Paul has achieved over the last 30 years is phenomenal. Under his leadership, the ASAO has gone from strength to strength. He has nurtured an incredible sense of community among those involved with the organisation of shows right across the UK, and the connections he has fostered with wider stakeholders who influence our industry, particularly Defra, benefits us all. Paul leaves a lasting legacy that is testament to his enduring passion for agricultural shows.”

Topics discussed at the ASAO Annual Conference have included marketing, entertainment and educating the next generation, to sponsorship, security and scheduling.

Yorkshire vet Peter Wright was the Conference’s Keynote Speaker. Peter, star of Channel 5’s The Yorkshire Vet who regularly appears at the Great Yorkshire Show as a special guest, spoke glowingly of the importance of agricultural shows.

Peter said: “Our rural and agricultural shows, the length and breadth of the UK, in themselves are an integral and vital part of rural life. They promote and showcase the excellence of British farming, the equine world, rural life and food production to a wider public.”

David Tite, a former ASAO Chair and the Society Manager at the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, the charity that organises and hosts the Great Yorkshire Show, said: “It is fantastic to welcome so many hard-working people to the Great Yorkshire Showground who are passionate about putting on shows for the public from all across the UK. Agricultural shows are as important ever, bringing together rural communities and informing the public about where food comes from and how the countryside is managed.”

The ASAO is the voice of the British agricultural show industry. Established in 1923 and run by ‘Show’ people, it represents the UK’s many agricultural, horticultural, equine and countryside events which, combined, host 400 days of entertainment and education about farming and the countryside each year.