Lots to Discover at New York Farm Show

Deborah Jeanne Sergeant
New York Correspondent

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The New York Farm Show proved to be the busiest, biggest yet with sizable crowds of farmers, laborers and landowners braving temperatures well below freezing and gusty wind. The show boasted five buildings of farm seminars, vendors and informational displays, from A.G. Edwards & Sons to ZWR Zapper Tool and hundreds of exhibitors in between.

One building featured a farm toy sale and display, to the delight of small children and not-so-small kids at heart.

“I was quite impressed with the exhibitors and attendees being as positive for what’s going on with the economy,” said Scott Grigor, manager. “The negativism wasn’t here. They are content and they know they’ll have some challenging years like they’ve had before. They’ll overcome the challenges. They aren’t strictly farmers, they’re businessmen.”

And as any good businessman knows, learning more about one’s trade is the key to success. Many attendees took advantage of the numerous educational opportunities available, with most seminars filled to capacity and the 2009 show offered more of them than ever before.

“To boost the value of your New York Farm Show trip, we’ve expanded our list of mini-seminars in the Arts and Home Center,” Grigor said. “The seminars went really well. The interest on the gas leasing is a hot item in Upstate New York, for example.”

Sponsored by the Northeast Equipment Dealers Association and American Agriculturist, the show’s “Farming for the Future” sessions were well attended and included “Gas leasing and its financial consequences” (co-hosted by New York Farm Bureau), “Where alternative energy fits your farm” (co-hosted by the New York Farm Viability Institute), and “What you must know about federal crop disaster program changes (co-hosted by First Pioneer Farm Credit).

Every day, forestry and wildlife workshops helped farmers learn about how woodlots and wildlife impact their operations. Sponsored by the New York Forest Owners Association, Department of Environmental Conservation, Cornell Cooperative Extension and State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, the 11 different sessions included topics such wild turkey management, insect threats, using woodlots for profit, woodlot deer, wild canines, and assessing present and future timer lot value.

Along with their sale of the famous hot beef “sundae,” the New York Beef Producers’ sessions drew interested crowds to learn about several beef-related topics. Cornell Cooperative Extension co-hosted the beef seminars. They included how to use ultrasound to measure marbling, rib eye area and back fat on a live animal; beef rotational grazing; proper calf castration to avoid reducing price; live and killed vaccines; freezer beef marketing; and how to pick the most profitable animal.

Attendees could also peruse the vendors of their favorite products and services and check out what’s new.

“Essentially all of our long-time exhibitors are returning because they have much in the way of new and improved products and services that can help you squeeze more profit from tight margins,” Grigor said.

Approximately 40 new vendors were added to the 2009 show. Of course, few ag operators come prepared to purchase and take delivery of large equipment at the show, but just seeing the machines in action and kicking some tires can help influence farmers’ future purchasing decisions.

Some new products included automated equipment, such as robotic milking systems, a feed pusher and a mobile barn cleaner. These displays attracted plenty of attention from dairy farmers looking for timesavers or just those interested in advances in robotics.

Among the array of new machines unveiled by companies were new utility tractor models and hay equipment.

The New York Farm show is open to the public and free with advanced tickets.

The 2010 show is slated for Feb. 25-27 and will be held at the New York State Fairgrounds.