Agriumbria: technologies and products for the Holiday of Agriculture
Agriumbria will reach the 48th edition of the trade fair set for April 1st to 3rd for professional farmers and the general public arriving for a holiday of flavors, traditions and technologies for learning and experiencing the Italian food supply chain. As customary, livestock raising and agricultural mechanization will be in the foreground with a vast array of farm animals and agricultural machinery and equipment
Agriumbria is an agricultural exposition of animal husbandry and food products scheduled for April 1st to 3rd in Bastia Umbra, near Perugia, which dates back to the 19th century with a trade fair tradition featuring the farm animals most commonly raised in the valleys of the central Umbria Region. Beginning in 1969 the event took on the present agricultural-animal husbandry format for promoting the development of activities in the territory and has hosted UmbriaFiere, the agency promoting other events, since 1980.
The atmosphere experienced on entry to Agriumbria is that of a strongly vibrant Holiday of Agriculture featuring a 360º panorama of agricultural products and services for farmers, from seeds and plants, all types of machinery and equipment, machinery for processing various raw materials and on to a variety of farm animals. Also brought in are food stands for visitors to taste and acquire a wide range of food products, from bread, oil, wine, honey, sausages and the like. The excellence of the food products from the region and throughout central Italy are confirmed and celebrated at Agriumbria year after year with exhibitions from around the area.
Also confirmed is the organization of the event which includes three specialized salons, Bancotec, Enotec and Oleatec, where visitors to the single area can take in machinery and equipment for the specialized processing and conservation of agri-food products; those for wine production and olive cultivation. In Umbria, production in this latter sector came to 1.2 million tons last season and support for this strategic sector is expected to arrive from European Union Rural Development funds allocated for the 2014-2020 program.
Farm animals make up one of the leading merchandise sectors for Agriumbria with the ItaliaAlleva (ItalyAnimalHusbandry) which reports a current decline in the number of animals, cattle, sheep, goats, rabbits, hogs and horses. The exposition is accompanied by competitions, shows, auctions and markets and panoramic comparisons for judging the genetic results of breeding thanks to the technical assistance of the AIA and purebred breeders associations’ experimental centers.
Among the various initiatives in this sector is the II Regional Show of the Chianina Cattle Breed, the regional Show of the italian Freisona Cattle Breed and the VIII Market Show of sheep and goat dairy breeds.
The dairy cattle herds in Umbria total 9,600 head with average annual production coming to about 8,500 liters per head with fat and protein content at 3.68% and 3.25% to testify to the important work of selection, assistance and control of the entire production in this sector. Also machinery and equipment for agriculture, gardening and forestry take up a large share of the Agriumbria exhibitions which feature some of the more outstanding brand name products shipped directly in increasing numbers by their manufacturers.
In this connection, the number of new tractor registered in central Italy in 2015 rose by 1.9%, by 3.6% in the Umbria Region and by 4.7% in the Perugia Province; transporter sales declined by double figures in the territory overall with gains of a few units reported in some localities; trailers registered in the six central regions disclosed a 2.8% increase but fell 15% in the Umbria Region and the Perugia Province.
FederUnacoma, the Italian Agricultural Machinery Manufacturers Federation taking part in Agriumbria, along with 30 other institutions, is moving into Pavilion 9, stand 14, where a large share of some 300 brand names will be showcased. The federation’s publication, Mondo Macchina/Machinery World, will be on hand for providing information on all the new developments in the sector.
According to the president of UmbriaFiere, Lazzaro Bogliari, the exhibition format has been designed for the intersectoral and interdisciplinary side of farming activities. “The purposes are to stimulate research on crop directions and projects for starting up initiatives to stimulate alternation of agricultural production cycles, achieve enterprise project and further the understanding of products which help improve the quality of life,” he said. The production supply chains featured in Agriumbria will also be dealt with in conferences and workshops scheduled over the days of the event involving high profile technical and scientific figures from abroad.
