A Horse trials event which attracts top class international riders, has become the latest casualty of the foot-and-mouth epidemic.

The three-day Witton Castle Horse Trials, near Bishop Auckland, County Durham, was scheduled for March 30 to April 1 but has been cancelled in line with horse trials across the country.

The twice-yearly charity event is held near the pig farm at Hamsterley and the abattoir at Witton-le-Wear which have fallen victim to the disease.

Ernie Fenwick, coorganiser, said: "We were expecting all the top class riders including Ian Stark, Karen Dixon and Blythe Tait. We're very sad. It's taken a lot of enjoyment away from competitors and of course we raise money for charity. But we can't go round spreading the disease."

The event, which raises about £6,000 for local charities in the spring and autumn, attracted royalty last October, when Princess Anne paid a surprise visit to watch daughter Zara compete.

The news comes as organisers of the region's agricultural events face a tense few months as they decide whether to abandon their shows.

A spokeswoman for the Great Yorkshire Show in July, which costs £1m to stage, said it would be a major blow if it had to be cancelled.

The three-day event, in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, is a showcase for the farming industry and has 1,000 cattle, 1,500 sheep, 200 pigs and 2,000 horses entered from across the country.

"But it would be a major blow to cancel. Not only to us but to the farming community and the 120,000 people we get every year," said the spokeswoman.

Other events under threat include Eggleston Show in Teesdale on September 15.

George Lawson, show secretary for the Eggleston Agricultural Society, said: "If the foot-and-mouth isn't finished by then, I would think it would be the end of agriculture."