Agri-Trade Equipment Expo packed them once again this year.
One of the biggest events on the Alberta farming calendar.
A record 425 exhibitors — up from 385 last year — set up temporary shop at Westerner Park, where 360,000 square feet of indoor and 75,000 square feet of outdoor space was available.
“The show was fantastic,” said Agri-Trade manager Dianne Smirl.
“We had great weather co-operation and exhibitors were very pleased with the turnout of interested buyers at the show.”
Among newcomers to the show this year was Brandon, Man.-based Precision Land Solutions.
Dan Aberhart, director of sales, said the event served as a “coming-out party” for the company, which is expanding west.
“We’re in a relatively new business so there was a lot of curiosity about what we do and our products. That drew a lot of people into our tent.”
Precision Land Solutions specializes in water management, from drainage to irrigation. It’s an add-on to the company’s contracting business installing tile drainage for farm fields.
The new side of the business involves providing producers with the hardware and software to provide variable irrigation based on a detailed profile of the crop and land.
“Water is the single best effecter of yield out there,” said Aberhart, whose technology can be used on a wide range of equipment.
“There’s hardly a producer out there that doesn’t have some water management issues of one kind or another to be dealt with.”
Inside the Prairie Pavilion, Lacombe-based FarmersEdge was showing off its own high-tech approach to giving producers a competitive advantage.
The company uses sophisticated technology and soil sampling to create a precision harvest map customized to farm conditions. Farmers also receive on-farm and online support.
Grant McCormick, FarmersEdge hub manager, said it’s been a good show this year.
“We’ve made a ton of new contacts that we didn’t know before. So we’re very excited about what Agri-Trade has brought to the table,” said McCormick.
The company has been growing steadily since it started in 2007 and began exhibiting at Agri-Trade.
“We’ve grown as a company so we need these kinds of platforms to be able to talk to and communicate with growers on a broad base. Trade shows like Agri-Trade really help us do that.”
pcowley@www.reddeeradvocate.com