BURWARTON show is joining forces with two other agricultural shows in the Midlands to stage a new ‘Triple Crown’ competition for showing cattle.

Hanbury Countryside Show in Worcestershire (Saturday, July 1) and Moreton Show in Gloucestershire (Saturday, September 2) will link up with Burwarton (Thursday, August 3) to award the Three Shires Cattle Trophy to the exhibitor who gains the most points across all three shows.

The new, prestigious award, with a £1,000 top prize, is sponsored by Moreton-based Nimrod Veterinary Products, manufacturers of the SELEKT cattle rehydration system.

Donna Renney, Nimrod’s operations director said: "We are thrilled to be supporting this new partnership between three of the best agricultural shows in the country.

"We hope this will be a great incentive for owners to show off all their hard work and their fabulous cattle."

Exhibitors will accumulate points by showing their cattle at all three shows and the running total will be kept secret until the finale at Moreton Show. As well as the £1,000 top prize, the runner-up will receive £350 and £150 will go to third place.

Peter Kirton, chief cattle steward at Burwarton Show said: "We wanted to create a new, prestigious and exciting competition for cattle exhibitors.

"This is extra to the traditional classes for all breeds of cattle and we hope that exhibitors will enjoy and support this new venture. We’re looking forward to seeing exhibitors at all three shows."

Lynne Parkes, Moreton Show’s livestock secretary said: "It’ll be a bit like revealing the results of the X Factor for cattle! Our treble, involving all three shows, is aiming to attract some of the best cattle from across the country and we’d like to encourage handlers to compete for what will be the equivalent of a premier league title in cattle showing."

Richard Heath, secretary at Hanbury Countryside Show, said: ‘We think it’s a great idea to form a partnership in cattle showing and I’m looking forward to seeing how the cattle progress through the classes at each show.

"It’s going to be pretty exciting by the time we get to Moreton Show in September, to see who’s our first Three Shires Cattle Trophy ‘Triple Crown’ winner."

Information about how to compete and the scoring system for the cattle showing ‘Triple Crown’ will be available shortly on the shows’ websites.