COVID-19 forces World Ag Expo to move to online format

A very different World Ag Expo opened Feb. 9. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the annual international Ag trade show was held entirely online for the first time in show history. The new online show boasted 752 exhibitors and an impressive 24,639 visits over three days from users in 70 countries, 49 states, and the District of Columbia.

Exhibitors at World Ag Expo engaged visitors through customized pages, live demonstrations, seminars, live chats and Zoom calls. They were able to highlight products and services with photos, videos, and giveaways

“This is a very different way to do a farm show,” Jerry Sinift, International Agri-Center CEO, said in a news release. “Our exhibitors worked hard on their pages and it shows. We had a strong first week and quality attendees. We have another ten months to share seminars and promote our exhibitors before we’re back to a live show.”

Still hungry for Ag information and a chance to interact with exhibitors, attendees flocked to the show website from all over the United States and around the world. More than 120 educational sessions were held covering water, dairy, sustainability, hemp, technology, and more. The seminars are now available on-demand at https://bit.ly/WAE21Seminars</

Representatives from the U.S. Commercial Service were on hand to assist with business matchmaking throughout the week. As requests for help came in, the team researched exhibitors to fulfill the needs. More than 60 business introductions were made over three days and matches will continue to be made. Attendees can request business matchmaking at https://bit.ly/WAEBizMatch

With the change to the traditional show format, organizers decided to make the online show available throughout 2021 and will provide new content to exhibitors and attendees each month. To get alerts of new content and show news, subscribe to the email list at https://bit.ly/WAEupdates.

World Ag Expo staff has also added an Exhibitor News section to the website so attendees can stay up-to-date all year long. Get the latest Exhibitor news at https://bit.ly/WAE21-ExhibitorNews.

World Ag Expo will return to the live show format February 8-10, 2022 in Tulare, CA. Current exhibitors are in the renewal process. New exhibitors can request space for the 2022 show in April. Join the exhibitor interest list at https://bit.ly/WAEupdates.