Moultrie to host three-day annual Sunbelt Ag Expo starting on Tuesday

MOULTRIE — The Sunbelt Ag Expo turns 45 this year, not counting a year closed due to COVID-19, and as usual the annual farm show is bringing three days of agricultural expertise from around the world to small-town Georgia.

Some 1,000 exhibitors will descend on Moultrie in coming days to set up for next week’s show days on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

Expo hours are 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday and 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. on Thursday. Tickets are $10 at the gate, with children 10 and under admitted free with a parent. A multiday pass is $20.

The show’s roots are in sharing the most cutting-edge agricultural knowledge, whether it’s drones or equipment, but the expo also offers much more, from antique tractor parades to taking a new ATV on a test drive to an expanded home-gardening section.

“One of the new attractions we’ve got is the antique tractor pull, which features tractors (model) 1965 and older, lawn mowers and mini-tractors,” Expo Executive Director Chip Blalock said. “That’s replacing the stock dog trials. We just decided to change it up a little bit this year.

“In the fields, we’re going to have spray drone demonstrations. We’re going to have peanut harvesting, hay harvesting and several pieces of tillage equipment.”

Many area farmers will be out in the fields harvesting peanuts and cotton themselves, but for those who do make time to attend, the trip will be worth it, Blalock said.

“I assure you they’ll see something that’ll boost their economic and environmental sustainability,” he said. “With equipment (prices) going up, we’re always looking to be more efficient, and that will be on display throughout the grounds.”

Expo isn’t just for farmers, however, as the sprawling grounds located at the former Spence Air Base will host sections of interest to animal lovers, with livestock demonstrations, aquaculture, poultry and horses. The ATV test tracks will include models from Can-Am, Kawasaki and Polaris, and kids can throw a hook in at one of the fishing demonstration ponds in the aquaculture section.

The Flint River Fresh backyard garden will feature tips on how to grow fresh fruits and vegetables at home.

“That section is going to include SOWEGA Beekeepers,” Blalock said. “They’ll be highlighting the need for pollinators, whether it’s a backyard garden or thousands of acres.”

The origins of the expo date back to Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College’s Dealer Days that started in 1964 as a recruiting event for graduating students. In 1978 the expo moved to Moultrie.

“The rest is history,” Blalock said.

About 50,000 attended the show in 2022, and with sunny and cool temperatures projected, hopes are to at least match that number next week. The spotlight state for 2023 is Georgia’s neighbor to the west, which will be featured as “Sweet Grown Alabama.”

The three-day show also brings in a foreign contingent, with about eight nations represented last year and a delegation from Hungary scheduled to be on hand this year.

“We’re looking forward to the world coming to the expo,” Blalock said. “It’s an honor for us to bring together the largest conglomeration of ag equipment. We just welcome the world to come to Moultrie. The weather next week is going to be phenomenal.”

For more information, visit https://sunbeltexpo.com/visitors/.

File Photo: Alan MauldinAlanMauldin[email protected]
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