After careful consideration and discussion among their respective boards, the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association and the Minnesota Corn Growers Association decided that the annual MN Ag Expo will be pared down to a virtual format in 2021 due to COVID-19 gathering restrictions.

“We are disappointed we won’t be able to hold our traditional Ag Expo events as we have in years past, especially following the 2020 Expo, which was one of the best yet,” said MSGA president Jamie Beyer. “We just felt, given all the uncertainty at the moment, it would be very difficult to navigate all the logistics involved in planning in an indoor trade show that hosts hundreds of farmers each day.”

MSGA and MCGA will still hold their respective annual meetings in-person at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center in Mankato on Jan. 20, with a joint lunch and speaker. A livestream broadcast will be available for Minnesota farmers who are unable to attend. All in-person activities will follow social distancing guidelines required by the state of Minnesota and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“One of our favorite parts of expo is the opportunity to come together and catch up with our peers,” says MCGA president Tim Waibel. "While that will certainly be missed this year, we look forward to continuing to provide the same high-quality speakers and opportunities to learn while keeping in mind the health and safety of all.”

More than 1,500 attendees and 80 exhibitors packed the trade show floor at the 2020 event, which featured a keynote address from Gov. Tim Walz. This year, MSGA and MCGA are working on hosting virtual speakers and researcher videos in lieu of an in-person trade show.

Future announcements will be available at mnagexpo.com and mnsoybean.com.

Source: Minnesota Soybean Growers Association, which is solely responsible for the information provided and is wholly owned by the source. Informa Business Media and all of its subsidiaries are not responsible for any of the content contained in this information asset.