WI Farm Technology Days 2020 Finalizes Innovation Square Exhibits

To Feature Apple, Kidney Bean, Dairy, Organic Greens, Horseradish, and Salmon Farms

Eau Claire, WI (Jan 16, 2020) – The Innovation Square Committee has finalized its farm exhibits for 2020 Wisconsin Farm Technology Days (WFTD) in Eau Claire County, July 21-23. Five Eau Claire area farms representing the wide diversity of farming in Western Wisconsin, including Apple, Kidney Bean, Dairy, Greens, Horseradish and Salmon production, will exhibit in this year’s Innovation Square at the center of the Huntsinger Farms, this year’s host farm.

“The Chippewa Valley area is a truly diverse agricultural area, with deep roots and a proud heritage of innovation and ingenuity across its many different farms,” said Andy Ferguson, co-owner of Ferguson’s Orchards, and chair of WFTD 2020’s Innovation Square Committee. “Farmers and the general public alike will be amazed at the presentations our five exhibitors are putting on for Farm Technology Days.”

The five 2020 Innovation Square Exhibitors are:

• Chippewa Valley Bean Company, the largest kidney bean grower and processor in the world, on the leading edge of nutrition trends providing an efficient plant-based protein;
• Ferguson’s Orchards, one of the Midwest’s largest commercial apple growers with 250,000 apple trees, and Western Wisconsin’s premier fall ‘agritourism’ destination with apple and pumpkin picking, corn mazes, wagon rides, and more.
• Penterman Farm, a 350-cow dairy farm, home of Marieke Gouda, an international awardwinning cheese company that uses farm-fresh milk from its Brown Swiss and Holstein herd to create farm-fresh, raw-milk cheese every day;
• Silver Spring Foods, owned by Huntsinger Farms, the host farm for WFTD 2020, the world’s largest grower and processor of horseradish; and,
• Superior Fresh, the largest aquaponic farm in the world, specializes in organic leafy greens, and Atlantic salmon and Steelhead, as well as regenerative agriculture to restore the environment on its land. Superior Fresh grows its organic greens year-round, providing Wisconsin and neighboring states fresh, locally grown lettuces throughout the year, regardless of weather.

The five exhibits represent “the best ideas, innovations, and entrepreneurs that Wisconsin’s modern agriculture and farmstead companies have to offer,” said Marieke Penterman, CEO of Marieke Gouda.

Each Innovation Square farm will feature rich exhibits from modern farming equipment, to taste tests, demonstrations, crop plots in different stages of maturity, recipes to take home, and fun games to test your knowledge. Brandon Gottsacker, president of Superior Fresh, said, “We hope to get people of all ages excited about agriculture, by giving everyone an up close and personal experience as to how and why we grow food the way we do.”

Added Cindy Brown, president and co-owner of The Chippewa Valley Bean Co, Inc., “Innovation is what it takes to be successful in farming. We’re excited to be alongside our four neighbors to show the rest of Wisconsin what we’re doing across the Chippewa Valley area.”

Please find links to media files here: http://www.wifarmtechnologydays.com/eau_claire/media/

About Wisconsin Farm Technology Days

Wisconsin Farm Technology Days is a three-day outdoor event showcasing the latest developments in production agriculture, including practical applications and recent research and technological developments. This is the only farm show of its size in the United States that is organized and run entirely by volunteers. As the largest outdoor agricultural event in the state, it welcomes more than 45,000 attendees, with more than 600 commercial and educational vendors. The first WFTD show was named Farm Progress Days and was held in Waupaca County in 1954. Eau Claire County hosted Farm Progress Days in 1992 and has been chosen as the host for the 67th annual event in 2020.

About Agriculture in Eau Claire County

Agriculture works hard for Eau Claire County every day. Family-owned farms, food processors and agriculture-related businesses generate thousands of jobs and millions of dollars of economic activity while contributing to local income and tax revenues. Eau Claire County, though dominated by the dairy industry, raises everything from meat goats to milking sheep to apples, grapes and vegetables. The county has seen farm numbers rise, while farm acreage has declined to an average farm size of 155 acres. Migration from the city to rural areas has resulted in smaller farms producing a variety of products. A diverse population has created opportunities to fill ethnic and specialty food niches. Meanwhile, county institutions and farmers have joined forces to produce fresh, healthy products to meet a growing demand for local food.

Contact:

Lee McEnany Caraher
Communications Chair
715-829-4566
lcaraher@double-forte.com