Blog post by Sean Doherty: Thoughts on the World’s Largest Farm Show

Last Thursday, I left the house at 4 am and picked up three fellow farmers to go to the World Ag Expo in Tulare. It’s about a four-hour drive from home and we got there at about 8 am just before they opened the gates.

This is the largest farm show in the world, with 2.6 million square feet of show grounds and 1,500 exhibitors. About 100,000 people attend this three-day extravaganza. I hadn't been for several years so this was the year to go apparently.

- Here are the farmers I traveled with to Tulare- Tyler Schofield, Bill Wallace and Mike Lux.

At the expo all the farm supply companies from Case IH, John Deere, and Claas on down to local companies show their newest and best stuff. I like to drool over all the shiny new tractors. It is an immense show, and impossible to see in one day though we tried our best.

It think it’s important to go every few years just to stay up on the new technology, like new software, GPS systems or water management tools. It was a long day and there is a lot of neat new stuff coming out that might be on my radar in the future. It was worth the 500 mile round trip.

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Sean Doherty is a 3rd generation rice farmer living out his dream, being a rice farmer in Dunnigan.

He farms in Yolo, Colusa, and Sutter Counties with his wife Melissa, and three kids, Hannah, Gus, and Mary. He enjoys being in the fields, watching the seasons, and sharing it with his family.

Read more about Sean in Rice Farming magazine