Sunscreen, hats and bottled water will be essential for the estimated 30,000 people attending Western Canada’s largest outdoor farm show, a few kilometres west of Langham.
Environment Canada is forecasting plenty of sunshine with forecast highs of 26 degrees Celsius on Tuesday, 29 degrees on Wednesday and 31 degrees on Thursday. The humidity will be make it feel even warmer with the humidex anywhere from three to five degrees higher than the temperature.
Abundant moisture has helped the crop plots—-many which are new or newer varieties of canola, wheat, barley, oats, peas, lentils and other crops.
There are more than 550 companies and organizations with exhibit space at Ag in Motion. The show site is over 100 acres of outdoor space with large tents and a few permanent structures. Among of the favorites stops are the Tractor Ride & Drive and the Sprayer Ride & Drive.
“Farmers can come, feel, touch, and see. That’s what it makes this show so special,” says Rob O’Conner, manager of Ag in Motion. “A farmer can get into cabs of three or four different tractors, sprayers or trucks at one time (from different companies), you can’t do that anywhere else.
There will be plenty of producer interest at the drone demonstrations. A recent decision by Health Canada approved the use of drone technology for pesticide application, so long as the product is already approved for convention aerial application. Producerd can check out two drone demonstrations: one for large aircraft and one for small aircraft.
A larger number of international visitors are expected highlighted by a governor from Kazakhstan and the chief trade commissioner from South Africa. Rob O’Conner anticipates approximately 300 buyers from 20 countries will attend Ag in Motion.
“Because the show now is mature and has a good reputation, we are getting a lot of support from Canadian trade offices and embassies,” O’Connor says. “The buyers coming now are better now than the buyers we had four or five years ago.”
There will be two Agtech Breakfasts this year. The Wednesday event focuses on technologies that are close to market or are already available, so farmers can get a jump on what available today or in the near future. The additional session on Thursday will spotlight early-stage technologies and breakthrough ideas. Both breakfasts are held in the Special Events Tent with a maximum of 250 participants. Previous Agtech Breakfasts have sold out in advance.
The full list of events and activities can be found here
(Above photo—courtesy GlacierFarmMedia)
