Expo director: Safety is our No. 1 priority

Published 5:07 pm Friday, July 24, 2020

MOULTRIE, Ga. — For 42 years the Sunbelt Ag Expo has offered farmers the latest in agricultural technology, but the Expo announced Friday that COVID-19 has canceled the show for this year.

The day before, on Thursday, the Expo hosted its annual Field Day with many modifications to protect visitors and staff from possible exposure to the coronavirus, but Executive Director Chip Blalock said such options just weren’t available for the three-day October show.

“Toughest decision we’ve ever made,” Blalock said.

Blalock, who became executive director in the late 1990s, has led Expo through the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001, torrential rain on Expo days in 2011 and 2014, and even put on the show four days after Hurricane Michael crashed through the region in 2018. Always before, the show has gone on.

“You can see all that stuff,” Blalock said about the Expo’s earlier challenges. “You can’t see a pandemic.”

The farm show was scheduled for Oct. 20-22. The board of directors made the decision to cancel it three months ahead of time because exhibitors need to know well in advance. Some need 6-8 weeks to get exhibits ready, while others need up to 10 weeks to get equipment positioned, Blalock said.

Some of the exhibitors travel long distances to the Expo and other farm shows. Those same exhibitors have their employees working remotely for the foreseeable future, some through the end of the year, Blalock said.

“If they’ve got them working remotely and not making sales calls, they’re certainly not going to let them go to a farm show with thousands of people,” he said. “You can’t have a farm show without any exhibitors.”

Some elements of the annual show are still expected to happen, Blalock said, but staff is working to figure out how. The Swisher Sweets/Sunbelt Ag Expo Southeastern Farmer of the Year award will be presented, but obviously not in person at the Expo, he said. Ten state winners were announced July 10 for this year’s award.

Similarly, the Southeastern Hay Contest is expected to go ahead, but the award will not be presented at Expo.

The Expo’s site at Spence Field also hosts the Calico Arts and Crafts Show each November, but Blalock said that event is much smaller with fewer “moving parts,” so officials can wait quite a while to decide whether to proceed with it or not.

“The safety of everyone is our No. 1 priority,” he said, even as he acknowledged the economic blow that canceling the farm show will bring.

In late June the Expo released the results of a University of Georgia study that said last year’s show brought $16.72 million to 20 South Georgia counties. About 1,200 exhibitors — from mom-and-pop craftsmen up to corporate giants like John Deere and Dodge — show off their wares. The Expo has been hesitant to release attendance figures since 9/11 but they are estimated in the tens of thousands over the three-day show and possibly even more.

The Expo staff plans to reach out to exhibitors as they prepare for the 2021 show and encourages everyone to follow its social media channels to keep up with the latest news. Visit www.sunbeltexpo.com for more information.