The Canadian Forage and Grassland Association’s provincial member, the Ontario Forage Council (OFC), hosted two successful Forage Expo events this year. We are happy to share some highlights from those events in this week’s blog. 
 
OFC’s Forage Expo events give hundreds of attendees the chance to see the latest forage equipment, watch field demos, attend the tradeshow and network with other producers. 
 
Huron County Forage Expo 
The temperature was hot enough to make you melt on July 4 in Gorrie for the Huron County Forage Expo, but that didn’t keep people away. Fifty pieces of equipment were registered for the event, ranging from mowers, rakes and tedders, to mergers, balers and harvesters. Equipment demos kept the field busy all day and then attendees were invited to check out the hay dryers across the road. 
 
Eastern Valley Forage Expo 
Eastern Valley Forage Expo in St. Isidore was thrown a curveball in the days leading up to the July 12 event when the rain from Hurricane Beryl passed through, leaving fields completely saturated. Showing the typical creativity and ingenuity of farmers, alternate plans were made for site setup and parking, while in-field demos were cancelled. Equipment reps kept the day going with engaging presentations and mowers eventually made it into the field for demos in front of eager attendees.  
 
Firefighter Experience 
At both locations this year a Firefighter Experience night was held to provide local first responders. This provided first responder with the opportunity to see the equipment up close, speak with representatives who have experience with the equipment and encourage them to think about finding their local dealers and think about who to reach out to when faced with an emergency involving farm equipment. 
 
Thank you 
A huge thank you to Huron County Soil & Crop Improvement Association, Eastern Valley Soil & Crop Improvement Association, Ian McDonald from Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) and Christine O’Reilly from OMAFRA for partnering with OFC on these events. A big thank you also goes out to our host farmers, Mark Horst and family and Thomas Haerle and family.