Over June 16 and 17, the Hamilton Showgrounds will be filled with everything alpaca for AlpacaFest.

AlpacaFest convenor Glen Sharp said people were travelling from Adelaide, Gippsland, Swan Hill and Ballarat for the weekend-long event.

“I’d say the event has been going for about 15 years,” he said.

“People are basically coming from all over for the weekend. This event has an A classification, and there are only a few shows with that in the country, so it’s right up there with the Royal shows.”

More than 200 animals and 60 fleeces will be on display at the event.

“There will be market stalls, information stands, displays of fleece, and food and drink for sale,” he said.

“Alpaca fleeces will also be for sale. For children, there will be miniature donkey rides which always attract a lot of attention.

“There will be plenty of categories and classes that the alpacas will be judged in which is always interesting to watch.”

Mr Sharp said the event would be a great way to learn about alpacas.

“Alpacas are often used as herd guards to protect sheep and lambs,” he said.

“They have the natural instinct to protect animals that are smaller than themselves.

“Hopefully people will come along and learn something new.

“Unfortunately there isn’t a fleece market in Australia for alpacas, so there are no large volumes of it being shipped off shore. It’s all done through mainly local processors.

“We want to encourage the rural sector to take a serious look at alpacas as an alternative form of agricultural diversification.”

AlpacaFest will be held at the Hamilton Showgrounds over Saturday June 16 and Sunday June 17.

“It’s all undercover at the showgrounds; there will be free parking and free entry,” he said.

“Hopefully we’ll get a good crowd of people.”

Mr Sharp said people could head to www.vicwestern.alpaca.asn.au for more information about AlpacaFest.