Get Ready: Here Comes RoboCrop and a Big Lineup of Ag Industry Shows

What better way to kick off the 2023-2024 specialty ag conference and trade show circuit than with a parade. The traditional meeting season for specialty crop growers begins this month —a bit earlier than usual — with an international event sponsored by our parent company, Meister Media Worldwide.

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FIRA USA takes place Sept. 19-21 at the Salinas (CA) Sports Complex. Billed as the only three-day event for autonomous farming and agricultural robotics solutions, the indoor/outdoor show features a Robots Parade on Day 1. With official mascot RoboCrop leading the way, more than two dozen ag robots will tour the expo zone while respective manufacturers make their pitches.

The second-year event attracted 1,000 attendees from 29 countries in its debut last October in Fresno, CA. Topics addressed included weed control, fertilization, harvesting, picking, and seeding. For more information, visit fira-usa.com.

American Fruit Grower hopes to see you at FIRA USA as well as several other prominent national events between September and March.

Oct. 15-17 — The show season has typically started with CAPCA’s annual conference. This year, in Reno, NV, the California Association of Pest Control Advisers focuses on agricultural technology.

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Nov. 14-17Fruit and Vegetable Grower CONNECTSM, presented by American Fruit Grower and sister publication American Vegetable Grower, ventures to Palm Springs, CA, this year. The event revolves around private collaboration and networking between executives from the largest and most progressive grower operations in North America and senior leadership at the leading industry supplier companies.

First week of December — As always, growers of various types and locales have one of three significant shows from which to pick: the Northwest Hort Expo (Dec. 4-6 in Kennewick, WA), Almond Conference (Dec. 5-7 in Sacramento, CA), and Great Lakes Expo (Dec. 5-7 in Grand Rapids, MI).

Jan. 11-14 — The Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference returns to Savannah, GA.

Jan. 22-24 — Meister Media presents its Women in Ag Tech event in Glendale, AZ, which precedes the company’s annual The VISION Conference (part of Meister Media’s Global Ag Tech Initiative).

Jan. 23-25 — The Unified Wine and Grape Symposium will take place in Sacramento, CA.

Final week of January — The Hershey (PA) Lodge is the place to be. The North American Strawberry Growers Association (NASGA) will host its annual conference from Jan. 28-31 in conjunction with the Jan. 30-Feb. 1 Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Convention.

Feb. 1-5 — Curious about agritourism? The International Agritourism Association (NAFDMA) heads east to host its next annual convention in Boston.

Feb. 11-14 — The International Fruit Tree Association (IFTA) takes its annual meeting to the Pacific Northwest for the first time since 2017, in this case the Yakima (WA) Convention Center.

Finally, Meister Media’s ninth annual BioSolutionsSM Conference & Expo returns in early 2024 at a time and location to be announced. For updates on the show and all Meister Media events, please stay tuned to GrowingProduce.com.

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