Canadians take the pulse of World Dairy Expo

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Walk around the World Dairy Expo at Madison, Wisconsin, and you’ll find Canadians everywhere – from the show ring, to the cattle barns, and the exhibit halls.

In the video below, RealAgriculture’s Bernard Tobin and Jordon Underhill, general manager of the Canadian Dairy XPO (CDX), take the pulse of the attendees at the annual dairy showcase. Overhanging this year’s World Dairy Expo was the new North American trade deal, the United States Mexico Canada Agreement (USMCA), which was struck just the day before the show started.

Underhill shares with Tobin the mood and reaction of dairy farmers that spoke with him as he toured the show. “Canadian producers are concerned for their own market, but they are also concerned for U.S. producers,” says Underhill who acknowledges that the American producers continue to weather troubled times. The consensus opinion of the farmers he talked with supports the view that the USMCA offers neither a short-term nor long-tern solution for U.S. producers.

CDX’s Jordon Underhill and Bernard Tobin discuss the USMCA at World Dairy Expo. Story continues below.

Underhill also identifies some of the insights he looks to capture when visiting the World Dairy Expo and the ideas and innovations that could make their way into the 2019 Canadian Dairy XPO, set for April 3 and 4 at Stratford, Ontario.

The 2018 CDX attracted 16,000 people for the two-day show, another record crowd. Underhill says CDX continues to evolve and producers can expect to see a number of changes for 2019 including: increased innovation from exhibitors; more producer panels in the education classroom; increased cow displays; a greater focus on beef genetics and how sexed semen is impacting herd management. Underhill also notes he’s making plans for a “country legend” to perform at CheeseFest. More details to come.

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