The organisers, DLG International (Frankfurt am Main) and VNU Exhibitions Asia Pacific (Bangkok), were delighted with the results of the first Agritechnica Asia trade fair for agricultural machinery. Striking a first balance, Peter Grothues, Managing Director of DLG Service GmbH, and Nino Gruettke, Managing Director of VNU Exhibitions Asia Pacific, say “Agritechnica Asia as the first spin-off of the world's largest trade fair for agricultural machinery and equipment, Agritechnica in Hanover, has become instantly established as a central forum for decision-makers and experts from the fields of farming and agricultural technology”.

Around 8,200 visitors from 76 countries gathered information at Agritechnica Asia, which was held from 15 to 17 March 2017 in Bangkok (Thailand) together with Horti Asia, the tradeshow for horticulture and floriculture. “The fact that over a third of the high-quality visitors came from outside the host country underscores the strong international nature of this new trade fair. We were thus able to satisfy the high expectations of the exhibitors. Our exhibitors see great opportunities for new business relations in the Asian market. They are convinced that mechanisation and the use of modern machinery will increase substantially in the coming decade, driven above all by a growing shortage of labour, more intensive competition and the resulting need to lower production costs”, said Philipp Schulze Esking, member of the DLG Board of Directors and Chairman of the DLG Exhibitions Department.

The organisers were also very satisfied with the “Hosted Buyer Programme” that brought over 300 top decision-makers from the entire Asia-Pacific region together at the two trade fairs.

Extensive technical programme

An extensive technical programme supplemented the range of products and services offered by the exhibitors. For instance, in their conferences the manufacturing company Claas, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the German international development cooperation agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the Regional Council of Agricultural Machinery in Asia and Pacific (ReCAMA/UN ESCAP) focused on the topics of precision farming, rice cultivation, and trade and investment in agricultural machinery and equipment in Asia. Furthermore, a DLG Forum established specially for the trade fairs offered opportunities for intensive exchange of opinions and experiences between experts from different fields of specialisation and for discussions with farmers and technology providers.

Altogether 219 exhibitors from 30 countries took part in Agritechnica Asia and Horti Asia, including the firms AGCO, Claas, Fliegl, Lovol, Maschio Gaspardo, Massey Ferguson and Pöttinger as launch partners of Agritechnica Asia.

The next Agritechnica Asia will again be held together with Horti Asia and feature an extended “Hosted Buyer Programme”. It is scheduled for 22 to 24 August 2018 in Bangkok.