World Ag Expo assumes new, virtual format for 2021 show

The first online World Ag Expo will be a yearlong event that begins on the originally scheduled show dates, Feb. 9-11.

The online expo will be offered free to attendees. Show organizers said live events and seminars will be presented online each day between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., with content remaining available on demand at no charge to attendees.

Officials at the International Agri-Center in Tulare, which presents the show, announced cancellation of the live event in mid-September due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and later decided to present a digital show as an alternative.

Attendees can find information and register for the expo at www.worldagexpo.com/attendees.

"A digital show is not a replacement for a live event like World Ag Expo," International Agri-Center CEO Jerry Sinift said. "Ag is essential and so is our job as a trade show, to bring buyers and sellers together. We're just going to do it a little bit differently in 2021."

World Ag Expo organizers said they worked with an event and conference management software firm, Map Your Show, which has produced more than 120 digital trade shows since pandemic restrictions began last March.

International Agri-Center Marketing Manager Jennifer Fawkes said the World Ag Expo will maintain an online presence for exhibitors throughout 2021.

"Each exhibitor has a microsite within the show to share information and hold live chats, along with many other options," Fawkes said, adding that the sites can be updated during the year. "We will have online seminars, the Top 10 New Products Contest and more new content being released throughout the year."

The California Farm Bureau is among exhibitors in the online show. The World Ag Expo said exhibitors will be adding content to their microsites through Feb. 5 and that attendees can preview the platform at bit.ly/WAE21Online.

To have free access to all content, users may register for a My Show Planner to save exhibitor lists, set reminders for events, download content, email exhibitors and more.

First presented in 1968 as the California Field and Row Crop Equipment Show and presented at the Tulare County fairgrounds, the show became the California Farm Equipment Show the following year and moved to the International Agri-Center in 1982. Renamed World Ag Expo in 2001, the live show has drawn an estimated annual average of 100,000 individuals from 65 countries; its organizers describe it as "the largest annual agricultural show of its kind."

One feature the online World Ag Expo will carry over from the live show is its Exhibitor Guide.

"Many of our attendees like to have a catalogue of the show to keep after World Ag Expo is over," International Agri-Center Show Manager Wally Roeben said. "It's a great resource and we're excited to make it available nationwide."

Attendees may have an Exhibitor Guide mailed to them by signing up at bit.ly/WAE21Mail. Show organizers said the guide will also be available beginning this week at New Holland dealers throughout the nation.