From Aug. 25-27, the annual Wisconsin Farm Technology Days will set up shop in a field near Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. Tent City will encompass 65 acres, filled with more than 600 exhibitors, family and youth activities, university presentations and tractor displays. At the heart of it all will be the new Innovation Square, an area set aside for new innovations and technologies.
“Hopefully it will be a central focus of the show,” Matt Glewen, the Wisconsin Farm Technology Days general manager, said in a press release. “A lot of times when people go to Farm Technology Days, they see things that are pretty much the same as the previous year. This should be something that livens things up a little bit.”
The new display will feature 11 exhibitors, including companies from several states and two University of Wisconsin – Madison departments. Products on display will span from big iron to small precision agriculture equipment, as well as genetic innovations.
New technology can also be seen on a bus tour of the host farm, Statz Bros. Inc. The farm recently underwent an expansion to consolidate its multiple milking locations. The new farm site has three freestall barns, a new double-50 parallel milking parlor and an anaerobic digester to create a reusable bedding material and produce electricity (enough to power the farm, surrounding homes and Tent City for the three days of the show).
Statz Bros. Inc. is one of 3,331 farms in Dane County, Wisconsin. The county is one of the top 50 dairy counties in the U.S. (number 24) in terms of milk production. It is also number one in the state for corn grain and corn silage production, number two for soybean production and number three for wheat production.
“This is a great opportunity to promote and educate the public about agriculture in Dane County,” says Bob Wipperfurth, executive committee chairman, 2015 Wisconsin Farm Technology Days.
Other ways agriculture will be showcased at the event will be through a large animal emergency response demonstration, flying drones, tractor safety displays and presentations by nationally recognized equine clinicians. University of Wisconsin Extension faculty plan to discuss a variety of topics, including cover crops, specialty crops, precision agriculture, animal care, field crops, vegetables and horticulture.
A big draw for farmers will be the large equipment demonstrations, which take place in the surrounding fields. The farm has reserved 120 acres for chopping corn and 120 acres for mowing, merging and chopping alfalfa. Tillage demonstrations will follow on the harvested fields.
To see the latest technologies and innovations both on display and in the field, make plans to attend Wisconsin Farm Technology Days, Aug. 25-27, in Dane County, Wisconsin. PD
PHOTO 1: New technologies from the farm to the field will be on display at Wisconsin Farm Technology Days.
PHOTO 2: A new double-50 parallel parlor was built to consolidate the milking facilities operated by Statz Bros. Inc. Photos provided by Wisconsin Farm Technology Days.
