A farming charity has been criticised for hosting a vegan festival with an “aggressive anti-farming agenda” which includes a bootcamp for activism.

The Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society, a charity with the stated aims of “the promotion of agriculture”, has a three-year contract to host the ‘Vegan Camp-Out’ at their showground.

The festival, which last year attracted more than 2,000 people, is sponsored by an organisation that describes dairy farming as “rape” and has hosted talks from activists who have spent time in prison for their campaigns.

Tim Bonner, Chief Executive of the Countryside Alliance, said that they had had complaints from their members who are coming under increasing attack from vegan activists.

He has written to the society to raise his concerns and called on them to “cancel this event to protect the farming community, rather than the promoting extremists who want to end their way of life”.

The Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society, which was founded more than 200 years ago, holds a number of farming events each year including the Nottinghamshire County Agricultural Show, which will take place next month.