Agriumbria 2024. The largest edition ever

Edition number 55, presented on Thursday, 28 March at the Sant'Angelo Auditorium in Bastia Umbra, will be the largest ever. The main new feature is the new exhibition area available to Umbriafiere: The New North Area.

"An important expansion," as Stefano Ansideri, President of Umbriafiere Spa, the body that organizes Agriumbria, pointed out, "which will make it possible to host new companies. The new area will not only redesign the fair layout, but will also make it possible to welcome more than 50 new exhibitors. This expansion means being able to respond to those entrepreneurs who have been knocking at our gates for years; it means being able to welcome companies that in past editions were unable to participate; it means offering visitors a broader and more varied range. It is a first step toward the expansion, modernization and functional redevelopment of the regional exhibition center." Ansideri also thanked the Umbriafiere staff, which, he reiterated, has only 4 employees and, thanks to many years of experience, designs and creates a fair with few equals at national level, generating an impressive business turnover for Umbria and central Italy and involving not only the directly affected sectors, but also transport, technology, logistics, personnel, with more than 107 direct temporary hires, catering and hospitality. "In the program of workshops and meetings,"

Ansideri concludes, "together with our partners and trade associations, we will focus on many of the fundamental issues for the challenges facing agriculture in the future. After all, one of Agriumbria's characteristics is precisely that of creating opportunities for dialogue between the business world and the world of science and research."

Donatella Tesei, President of the Umbria Region, also spoke at the press conference, emphasizing: "Our attention at regional level, among the various strategic projects, is also and above all on the exhibition hub, which, as is now clear to all stakeholders, has and must continue to have a significant role for Umbria and central Italy. The companies from the various economic sectors themselves are showing us how important the exhibition center is, with many new initiatives carried out in recent years and several requests for events and shows. I would also like to underline the role of the regional subsidiaries (Umbriafiere is one of them), all of which are in excellent health and today finally represent strategic development hubs for the various sectors. As the Regional Government, we have placed the subsidiaries back at the center of communities and at the service of businesses and citizens. Finally, we are happy and aware that Umbria is hosting one of the most important moments for the primary sector at national level, and this awareness translates into concrete actions moving toward the expansion and modernization of Umbriafiere, now imminent."

Paola Lungarotti, Mayor of Bastia Umbra, and Roberto Morroni, Councilor for Agricultural Policies of the Umbria Region, also spoke at the presentation: "The value of the 2024 trade fair in terms of numbers and quality is truly impressive. Beyond the numbers, the interesting thing is that here at Agriumbria it is possible to see the new trends and paradigms of Italian and European agriculture."

The 55th edition will therefore host more than 450 companies representing over 2,800 brands. As usual, great space will be dedicated to livestock farming, with the fair confirming itself as the Italian Meat Hub.

Now in its 55th edition, the Umbrian fair is in fact the home of Italian agriculture, with more than 85,000 visitors over the last two editions. Agriumbria is a phenomenon widely recognized by the main Italian operators, who see this exhibition as the ideal place for agreements, contracts and synergies, making it the largest sector fair in central and southern Italy, with the broadest livestock section, officially the "Italian Meat Hub" and curator of the Meat Consumption Observatory. As tradition dictates, also thanks to the partnership between the fair and the Italian Breeders Association (A.I.A.), beef cattle will be at the center. Dairy breeds and dual-purpose breeds will also be present.

The Bastia Umbra program includes the two national shows curated by ANABIC, dedicated to the Chianina breed, 37th edition, and the Romagnola breed, 31st edition. The other three breeds in the circuit, Marchigiana, Podolica and Maremmana, will be present as part of Italialleva's traditional animal exhibition, the heart of Agriumbria. As the organizers explain: "Through conferences, initiatives and discussions involving all stakeholders, we seek to place the relationship between meat and nutrition, the environmental and economic sustainability of farms, and the economic and cultural value of this type of activity at the center of the national debate."

The new exhibition spaces will allow Agriumbria to enhance existing product sectors by increasing the area dedicated to them. Agriumbria will host the many different forms of Italian agriculture and all the productive and commodity sectors connected to them.

The new management of the refreshment point inside the Umbriafiere area will present, together with A.I.A. (Italian Breeders Association), a complete and guaranteed catering offer featuring the best Italian meats. It is a natural evolution of the path undertaken for years by Agriumbria together with the livestock sector, which in this edition culminates in a real restaurant point dedicated exclusively to Italian meats. A place to taste and learn about the work of operators along the entire supply chain that brings meat from the farm to the table. A space dedicated to taste and knowledge where the public will be able to engage with experts and learn about guarantees in terms of food safety, nutritional properties and the goodness of certified quality meat.

In the current national exhibition landscape, the forestry sector is often relegated to the broader agricultural sector and therefore suffers from underrepresentation. In general, machinery and equipment for forest work and the "first processing of wood" find a non-specific showcase in events dedicated to agricultural mechanics or the garden sector. The 2024 innovation of a demonstration area dedicated to forestry moves in the direction of addressing this visibility gap and was created with the aim of enhancing Italian companies in the agroforestry sector and showing professionals the advantages of modern mechanization. The Salon, co-designed and created in collaboration with G. PIRRERA EVENTI, draws on their experience in organizing dynamic forestry fairs in northern Italy.

As tradition dictates, there will also be stands and spaces dedicated to outdoor life, hobbies and passions connected to the world of the land. There will be many food stands, featuring Italian agri-food excellence. Several moments are scheduled for consumers, particularly on the themes of healthy and proper nutrition, the quality of Made in Italy products, supply chains and traceability, quality meats and the sustainability of livestock farming. There will also be many technical moments for professionals, conferences and previews of projects and machinery.