2012 World Dairy Expo Draws Bigger Crowd to More Exhibits

October 21, 2012

Nearly 72,000 attendees checked out not only more exhibits, but also a bigger showfloor at the recent World Dairy Expo at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison, Wis.

The number of attendees saw an uptick of 5.6 percent, compared with last year’s show.

In addition, there was a 6.5-percent increase of exhibitors to 863 and a showfloor that grew 8.8 percent to 560,600 net square feet, compared with 2011, according to John Rozum, sales manager for World Dairy Expo.

He added the primary reason for the growth at this year’s event was the addition of more available space.

“The biggest change for us was the addition of a 26,000 square foot temporary exhibit structure that allowed us to expand by 130 new booths,” Rozum said.

He added, “We’ve been pushing maximum capacity for many years with a substantial wait list, and adding this new space gave us our first big expansion in many years.”

Last year’s show ranked No. 35 on the 2011 TSNN Top 250 Trade Show list with a showfloor that spanned more than 515,000 net sq. ft.

“That extra space was primary the factor in the increase in NSF and exhibitor numbers, which in turn really gave attendees a solid new reason to make the trip to Madison in 2012,” Rozum said.

WDE Management owns the show that ran Oct. 2-6 and is nearing its 50th anniversary in 2016.

The show featured special guests, including USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Wisconsin Agriculture Secretary Ben Brancel and Dane County Executive Joe Parisi.

One of the highlights of the show is the naming of the Supreme Champion.

This year’s main winner was RF Goldwyn Hailey, owned by Gen-Com Holstein Ltd. of Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil, Quebec, that captured the Supreme Champion title of the 2012 World Dairy Expo.

Hailey also was named the winning Six-Year-Old & Older Cow and Senior Champion of the 2012 International Holstein Open Show, adding on to her title of Grand Champion.

Next year’s show will be held Oct. 1-5 at the Alliant Energy Center.

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