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Le Courrier d’Afrique 54. Madame Ines Rathke, good morning, can you introduce us to DLG, official organizer of the Euro Tier Show?
Ines Rathke : DLG is the German Agricultural Society, a non-profit organisation, established 139 years ago in 1885. The objective then and still today is to enable the sharing of practical knowledge among farmers, including machinery and equipment. DLG held its first exhibition in 1887 and it was a successful way of making information available, which still continues today. EuroTier is a good example. DLG also has a department of some 25 full-time staff who are specialists in agriculture for machinery, from feed, dairy to poultry and arable farming. DLG conducts practical trials and tests to keep its members informed of the latest developments: DLG's International Crop Production Centre is a 600-hectare farm site in Bernburg- Strenzfeld, Germany and the DLG Test Centre, Europe's largest agricultural machinery test centre for Technology and Farm Inputs, located in Gross-Umstadt, Germany. DLG bridges the gap between theory and practice, as evidenced by more than 40 industry working groups on topics like feed and livestock management working groups on topics like feed and livestock management
EuroTier will take place from November 12 to 15, 2024 in Hannover. Can you tell us about this show? How are the preparations going and what are the expected challenges?
EuroTier is the leading exhibition for technical solutions for the livestock sector in poultry, pig, dairy, beef and pig farming, including feed. The preparations for the exhibition are going well. The exhibition has already attracted more than 2100 exhibitors across 13 halls, EuroTier this year also offers 400 side events in the technical program. The challenge is now in the visitors’ hands: They need to make sure they plan enough time to attend all relevant events from edition to edition, we have seen more than 20 percent increase of visitors from the African region EuroTier s co-located with another major event: Energy Decentral, a leading trade fair for renewable energy with a focus on agriculture.
What is new in this edition compared to previous editions and what can participants expect during the 4 days of the show?
The technical program is governed by the theme “We innovate animal farming”. Climate change, increased environmental regulations and changing social demands on agriculture, means livestock farmers need innovations that support sustainable operations. Solutions can be found at the exhibition and within the technical program which contains conferences, discussions, expert talks and company presentations. The technical trend topics are incorporated into our DLG-Spotlights. One is called “Farm Robot Event” where feed robots for cattle arebe presented in live action..The DLG has been dedicated to the use of agricultural robots for many years. With FarmRobotix, it has now created a new platform for robotics, digitization, automation and AI in agriculture. The platform is aimed at farmers, manufacturers, start-ups and technology providers artificial intelligence in the poultry housing” shows new and intelligent ways of farming, whereas the “TopTierTreff” presents live animals, show casing genetics for beef and dairy. The new “In house farming” venue shows self-contained indoor agriculture systems. Each of these topics is explored in-depth using exhibits, expert talks and hands-on information and above all offers: interaction with farmers
What assessment do you make of the
latest edition of the Euro Tier? Do you consider this event a success?
The 2024 edition is going to be bigger than the last event and offers more innovations than before. More than 255 world premiering innovations have been registered, 214 have passed all jury requirements, resulting in four gold and 21 silver awards. We are proud to present not only “digital” advancements, but also practical solutions with direct impact to welfare, such as a fresh air supply, directly onto resting and ruminating cows when lying down, preventing heat stress. Another one is a technical system for residue-free control of the red poultry mite, that has the potential to replace the chemical control methods. A fully automatic vaccination robot for poultry farming has the potential to replace manual vaccination with needles and another technical innovation enables voice controlled, AI-aided data management for significant improvement of calf-management.
How can we ensure the success of this show in 2024?
With four days of exhibition with companies from some more than 50 countries and an accompanying technical program that promise farmers from around 140 countries solutions to virtually any problem on the farm, we believe EuroTier will contribute to improving livestock farming all around the world. As organiser, the DLG aims to offer farmers the full range of international solutions, which enable them to make informed and wise decisions toward a sustainable future oftheir farms.
What is the contribution of expected foreign exhibitors and participants?
The more than 2100 exhibitors cover the latest developments in cattle, pig and poultry production including the cross-industry topics of alternative proteins, genetics, feed and operating resources, husbandry and feeding systems, digitalization, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation. Milking and cooling technologies, animal housing, manure removal and transportation also feature.
Which will be the guest country of honor at this 2024 edition and why the choice of this country?
This year’s edition of EuroTier honoursthe world’s agricultural countries as we are expecting farming visitors from more than 140 coutries. Our 25 country pavilions which are collections of companies from a particular region, is a place where you can usually find many new exhibitors. Bulgaria, China, Finland, Korea, Spain and France, the US and the UK are among the countries with a pavilion this year.
What developments do you envisage for the Euro Tier show in the coming years?
After each EuroTier edition we conduct a thorough review of feedback from both visitors and exhibitors. This forms valuable feedback for the next edition of EuroTier. We expect more innovations especially as digitalizations and AI are enablers that will shape the future. This can be clearly seen in this year’s startup area. The number of startup companies increased by more than 35% this year. There are 34 startup companies from 15 countries, from Denmark to USA. Startups and their solutions are a good indication of new things to come. We recommend a visit to hall 24 where they are located.
What information should you remember before the day?
Before coming to EuroTier, visitors should download the free EuroTier app. Planning your visit is essential as the exhibition covers 220,000 square meters, the size of a smallish German farm. The app offers easy product and exhibitor searches and also match-making features meaning the visitor can be matched with the exhibitors that offer exactly the right solution. We recommend two days to visit the exhibition. Please use the international visitors lounge located on the DLG stand in hall 13 to stretch your legs, though there is no need to do much walking if you don’t want to, as we have free shuttles that take vistors round the exhibition.
In your opinion, what are the challenges for German agriculture in the face of current climate change?
In Germany, we feel climate change especially in more difficult weather conditions. These are impacting locals harvests and as a result the supply and cost of animal feed: prices and availability are becoming increasingly volatile.. Long hot weather periods are posing a challenge to heat sensitive animals and hence provide a challenge for effective temperature- und climate control inside stables.EuroTier as an exhibition will be serving farmers, offering alternative ways to overcome these challenges
What message would you like to convey to participants and visitors to the EuroTier Show?
Iexpect EuroTier 2024 to offer even more world premiering innovations for all areas of livestock production and I expect more farming visitors from northern Africa. EuroTier 2024 in parallel with EnergyDecentral along with the Inhouse Farming Feed and Food Show will be a guiding light, giving farmers from all over the world an array of solutions and farm approaches that will equip them to develop farming further. We look forward to welcoming readers from Le Courrier d’Afrique 54.
