CUTE and cuddly, warm and woolly, tender and tasty or just plain weird and wonderful - it doesn't matter which way you view them, they're coming to Deloraine this weekend.
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The inaugural 2013 Undercover Alpaca Expo was given a breath of life from Deloraine breeder Ken Manning, who wanted a platform to showcase the animals.
"It's purely and simply about alpacas," Mr Manning said.
"We've got the fashion parade, which is a bit of a novelty, people will be able to see what garments produced by the alpacas look like, there's also judging and a shearing demonstration."
The show also marks the establishment of the Tasmanian Region Northern Alpaca Breeders Network.
"A lot of people are saying it's a good idea, it's as though we're getting praise from people just for thinking of it," Mr Manning said.
He said information about alpaca meat would also be on display as a possible future for Tasmanian produce.
"We've got a lot of wethers in Tasmania, we've been selling them as grass cutters or pets to people, but there's only so many we can get rid of," Mr Manning said.
"Alpaca meat is available in most states, mostly New South Wales, so a few breeders are working together to promote the meat in Tasmania."
He said Australia produced 10,000 alpacas a year and that there was only one Tasmanian abattoir licensed to prepare their meat.The alpaca expo will run at the Deloraine Showgrounds from 9am to 3.30pm on Saturday and Sunday.
