The Saskatoon Fall Fair is facing a dilemma.
The cattle show is being isolated by its neighbouring shows in November and it has to choose when to go in 2008.
Saskatoon Exhibition agriculture manager Lori Cates’ said the fall cattle show was a success again this year, despite the pressures of higher costs and fewer producers and a plummeting cattle market.
“We had 600 registered with purebreds and commercials. That’s steady with years past. Smaller shows like ours have to compete on a local level, but still be part of a larger (purebred cattle show) circuit,” she said.
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While some prairie livestock shows have disappeared over the past 20 years, Saskatoon’s Fall Fair and Lloydminster’s Stockade Roundup have remained, sandwiched comfortably around the larger Edmonton Farmfair International and the giant Canadian Western Agribition.
Cattle producers can take part in Lloydminster, followed by Edmonton, then move to Saskatoon and finally make the trip to Regina.
In 2008, to accommodate the rodeo circuit and the calendar, Northlands is moving Farmfair one week earlier to begin Nov. 3. Lloydminster set its dates to fit ahead of Edmonton so it will begin Oct. 30, said Lloydminster Exhibition agriculture manager Sam Hardstaff. Agribition’s cattle events start Nov. 24. That means the Saskatoon event will have to choose to start either Nov. 13 or 20. Either way, cattle producers will be forced to take a week off in the middle of the month.
Cates said in the challenging business of cattle exhibitions, date selection can be critical to success.
“You want to encourage producers to keep coming out and marketing in your region. We’ve generally been placed nicely in the middle between the shows. This year we have to choose one or the other and hope the producers don’t decide to skip one event because of an interruption in the circuit,” she said.
“We’ll pick one with consultation with our producers and hope (for) the best and a better calendar in 2009.”
