The dates for this year are Sept 12 - 14
By
Mark Schadenberg
The
size and scope continues to be more and more expansive.
More
and more to see and learn about, and possibly buy if you’re involved in the
agriculture sector of the economy.
As
I write in 2017 about Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show in Woodstock, I’m going to
shuffle through their website and simply add to what I wrote about in 2016.
Remember,
I’m the Woodstock Realtor who promotes everything about Oxford County, so
that’s why I’m the real estate expert for you to call when it’s time to buy or
sell.
2016
– A LOOK BACK (With Edits And Updates)
Woodstock and Oxford County are known as the Dairy Capital of
Canada.
With a large trade show happening in Oxford, Woodstock will be the economy's agricultural sector capital with the annual Canada's Outdoor Farm Show (COFS), Sept. 12-14 in 2017 (8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.) at the city's northwest corner – Oxford Road 17 (Known locally as Tollgate Road) and the 11th Line. The event has been annual at this University of Guelph managed site since 1997.
I would certainly not make any assumptions that this year's show is the same as the one 52 weeks ago, but as a Woodstock resident I want to reiterate the importance of agriculture and this trade show to our local economy.
With a large trade show happening in Oxford, Woodstock will be the economy's agricultural sector capital with the annual Canada's Outdoor Farm Show (COFS), Sept. 12-14 in 2017 (8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m.) at the city's northwest corner – Oxford Road 17 (Known locally as Tollgate Road) and the 11th Line. The event has been annual at this University of Guelph managed site since 1997.
I would certainly not make any assumptions that this year's show is the same as the one 52 weeks ago, but as a Woodstock resident I want to reiterate the importance of agriculture and this trade show to our local economy.
Site maps best seen at the event's website
Canada's Outdoor Farm Show is gigantic. The exhibitors will fill up every hotel
in Woodstock and Ingersoll, and every restaurant at dinner time. Lunch is
certainly spent on-site where participants (Show goers and exhibitors) often going
to the Lions Club food tent. I’m working the grills this year on Thursday, by
the way.
Innovation and re-invention are the best words to use in describing any new or advanced technology in any industry. Many reports have been released on how farmers are increasing the crop yields and better utilizing their acreage in this day and age of 'corporate-like family farms'.
Innovation and re-invention are the best words to use in describing any new or advanced technology in any industry. Many reports have been released on how farmers are increasing the crop yields and better utilizing their acreage in this day and age of 'corporate-like family farms'.
The environment and stewards for tomorrow is also extremely
important.
The farm show depicts in advancements in all facets of the agriculture economy -- livestock, crops, milk production, egg production, and the machinery and the "machinery' needed to grow the industry. Robotic milking is almost common-place today, but when the CFOS began about 20 years ago it represented innovation for tomorrow.
The farm show depicts in advancements in all facets of the agriculture economy -- livestock, crops, milk production, egg production, and the machinery and the "machinery' needed to grow the industry. Robotic milking is almost common-place today, but when the CFOS began about 20 years ago it represented innovation for tomorrow.
Not to be forgotten is many areas of farming as a business
such as finances, credit lines and accounting.
There are an astounding 750 exhibitors and dozens of demonstrations scheduled. For example, Wednesday includes a focus on sheep handling, a fertilizer seminar, tillage demo, and a special 4-H Ontario presentation. Distributors of seed plant sample crops at the CFOS site, such as Dekalb and Climate FieldView.
There are an astounding 750 exhibitors and dozens of demonstrations scheduled. For example, Wednesday includes a focus on sheep handling, a fertilizer seminar, tillage demo, and a special 4-H Ontario presentation. Distributors of seed plant sample crops at the CFOS site, such as Dekalb and Climate FieldView.
As their website says: “As our nation’s premier outdoor
agricultural showcase, Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show offers “one-stop shopping”
for farmers and highlights the most innovative and technologically advanced
agricultural products and services available.”
Admission
is $20 in 2017 (up from 17 last year) for the first day and $10 if you want to
return for a second day, and with the number of possibilities of people to talk
to, I would guess it will be a 2-day visit for most farmers, who travel a
significant distance usually to attend. For youth 13-17, the admission is $10,
which is a great deal for day of education, experience, environment, evaluation and ecology.
The parking is free.
Since the automobile industry (trucks) is related to farming,
Toyota and other manufacturers will also be on-site with test drive opportunities.
Farmers will also like to test drive equipment such as tractors and sprayers.
Making an implements purchase for a farm today is a massive investment.
One of the many connections to Woodstock and dairy at the farm show is Lely, which has a location in Woodstock so it's also a local employer.
One of the many connections to Woodstock and dairy at the farm show is Lely, which has a location in Woodstock so it's also a local employer.
From the magazine The Canadian Business Journal, looking back at 2015 show:
()()()()()()()()()
The Canadian Business Journal was at COFS and
had an opportunity to catch a birds-eye view of the goings-on and also to speak
with event president Doug Wagner at the event, and again soon after the show’s
conclusion in 2015.
“We are very pleased that 43,200 people
attended the show, especially since many farmers were in the middle of harvest
and still managed to take a day to come and see the latest innovations in
agriculture,” Wagner said.
It was Wagner and a man named Ginty Jocius
who forged a business alliance and are largely credited with getting COFS off
the ground with that inaugural show in 1994 and 200 exhibitors and advancing it
to the stage it is at today with 750 exhibitors. It has been thanks to their
tireless efforts and dedicated staff members who have turned this marquee event
into a resounding success. As with any large trade show, a significant amount
of debt was accrued in that first year and Wagner remembers very well how
difficult it was to secure any type of meaningful financing.
“Ginty pretty much financed the whole thing
himself,” Wagner reveals. “It was tough to get anybody to give us much credit
in the first four or five years but we got over those hurdles.”
For people involved in the agriculture
industry, the name Ginty Jocius is extremely well known. He was viewed as an
entrepreneurial visionary who always did what he could to advance the
agricultural sector in the eyes of the public and government. He was named
Agri-Marketer of the Year by the Canadian Agri-Marketing Association (CAMA) and
Alumnus of Honour by the University of Guelph in 1996. Jocius was a tireless
campaigner in the political arenas, at both the federal and local levels. He
died in 2008 at the age of 61. A memorial waterfall at COFS has been named in
his honour.
Jocius and Wagner set up the first three
Canadian Outdoor Farms Shows in Burford, but an opportunity presented itself to
lease space at the nearby University of Guelph Woodstock Research Station. The
move took place in 1997.
“We have had a very good relationship with
the University of Guelph over the past 20 years. With their expertise, they’ve
been a tremendous asset especially with their field demonstration plots and
they certainly help us manage all of our fields since they have that
equipment,” Wagner says.
()()()()()()()()()
Today,
the show is owned by a marketing firm called Glacier Farm Media.
In 2015, the COFS attendance topped 43,000.
International attendees to COFS 2015 included visitors from Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, Mexico, Denmark and India.
International attendees to COFS 2015 included visitors from Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, Japan, Mexico, Denmark and India.
This
giant farming trade show encompasses over 100 acres and features RWF (Robert’s
Welding & Fabricating) Bron of Woodstock, plus Kubota, Newtech, Husky, AgroSpray,
New Holland, Krone, Husqvarna, Kawasaki, Makita, Masterfeeds, and even a
construction company named Big Ass Solutions. You could says it’s everyone from
A to Zolarayz
For more details, call: 1-800-563-5441, or email info@outdoorfarmshow.com
For more details, call: 1-800-563-5441, or email info@outdoorfarmshow.com
Facebook:
Canada’s Outdoor Farm Show
As their slogan says, the COFS is: "Where Farmers Meet"
As their slogan says, the COFS is: "Where Farmers Meet"
LINKS:
www.outdoorfarmshow.com
www.outdoorfarmshow.com
Some
more event history:
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Mark Schadenberg, Sales
Representative
Senior Real Estate Specialist
(SRES designation)
Royal LePage Triland Realty
Independently Owned & Operated, Brokerage
757 Dundas St, Woodstock
(519) 537-1553, cell or text
Email: mschadenberg@rogers.com
Twitter: markroyallepage
Facebook: Mark Schadenberg, Royal LePage Triland
Discussion . . . Direction . . . Determination . . .
Destination
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