On again, off again: Agri-Trade called off for 2020

One of the few agriculture tradeshows still on the calendar for an in-person event has now officially been cancelled.

Agri-Trade Equipment Expo was to be held November 11 – 13 at Westerner Park, at Red Deer, Alta. Initially, organizers had committed to hold the event despite COVID-19, but in line with provincial health and safety guidelines.

Although Alberta’s Relaunch Strategy guidelines do allow for trade shows to take place, considering all factors, organizers felt they had no choice but to cancel the show, according to a press release.

“After hundreds of event cancellations over the past six months, we wanted to try everything we could to safely and successfully host Agri-Trade, once we were given the green light for tradeshows by Alberta Health Services. But as we monitor the environment and the ongoing challenges and feedback from exhibitors and stakeholders, we feel that the risks outweigh the reward in pushing forward this year,” says Mike Olesen, CEO for Westerner Park.

While the show itself may have been able to accommodate safety restrictions, many agriculture company corporate policies have restricted travel, impacting both exhibitor participation and attendance for the event.

“With so many concerns around the current situation with COVID-19, many companies have implemented restricted travel policies. With a significant number of companies having to cancel, we felt that the show would not be representative of the Agri-Trade brand.  This was not a decision that was made lightly, we left no stone unturned as we were making this decision,” says David Fiddler, Agri-Trade Expo show manager.