‘Vermont wants a farm show’: Long-running agricultural event returns in April

The Vermont Farm Show, a historic meeting place for farmers since the 1930s, is set to return next spring with the first show in seven years taking place April 16-17 at the Champlain Valley Exposition in Essex Junction.

The show, which attracted farmers and vendors from Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and elsewhere, stopped in 2021 in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic. Originally geared toward dairy farmers and maple producers, it used to be a trade show and a place for agriculture and labor associations to meet.

Now, the show’s new organizers want to expand the focus to include education and engagement for the wider community connected to agriculture, not just farmers themselves.

“The re-envisioned event will bring together farmers, producers, industry, and the public for an experience that honors tradition while embracing innovation,” the Vermont Farm Show Foundation wrote in a press release. “This truly marks a new chapter for the Farm Show.”

The foundation, a nonprofit that has taken over as organizer of the show, says its goal is to preserve the legacy of the event and build agricultural knowledge and community for farmers and nonfarmers alike.

Kim Stinson, the foundation’s director, said that in the years the farm show wasn’t running, it was going through significant changes.

In 2024, the Vermont Farm Show’s board of trustees set in motion an engagement process that asked the public, the industry and farmers across the state what they needed and wanted from a reimagined farm show. In the years following, the show changed its tax status and was granted 501(c)3 nonprofit status this year.

“It was determined that yes, Vermont wants a farm show. This is important,” Stinson said. “Our agriculture is a cornerstone of our state’s identity, so here we are.”

The farm show was also a cornerstone of agriculture in Vermont and grew over time to accommodate the changing industry in the state. The show outgrew its original home in Barre and moved to the Champlain Valley Expo in 2012, where even more space was filled with exhibitions. The nonprofit foundation credits the diversifying agricultural sector at the time for the show’s expansion.

The show was one of the “most important gatherings” of the year, said Amanda Ryan, director of operations with the Vermont Farm Bureau.

Ryan said the Farm Bureau is pleased that the show is back on. The bureau has exhibited at the farm show in the past and plans to participate in 2027. 

Lindsey Brand, marketing and communications director for Northeast Organic Farming Association of Vermont, said many of the association’s members are excited the show is coming back and that NOFA-VT staff and members will be in attendance in the spring.

Ryan said the farm community was suffering the loss of the show, and she’s “curious what the reboot looks like.”

According to Stinson, the reboot will include more interactive elements, including hands-on exhibits, workshops and panels. She said there will be products to sample and buy, equipment demonstrations, and perhaps an outdoor component, since the show will be held in the spring.

Traditionally, the show was held in January. Stinson said the board hopes, based on feedback during the engagement process, that hosting it a little later in the year may help people traveling from farther afield to avoid potentially harsh winter weather. And she said the longer spring days help, too.

While the original farm show was an annual multiday event, the foundation is looking beyond the show to try to meet the needs of the agricultural community in different ways.

“Instead of just having an annual show once a year, we’re really looking at the year-round aspect of, what can the Vermont Farm Show Foundation do to support agriculture year-round?” Stinson said.

She also pointed to the much broader network of Vermonters connected to the farming community, like mechanics, electricians and grocery workers. She hopes the upcoming show strengthens and celebrates that network.

“There’s so much connection in every aspect of the Vermont economy that connects back to agriculture,” she said. “It almost looks like a giant food web. Like, how are we all interconnected?”

Read the story on VTDigger here: ‘Vermont wants a farm show’: Long-running agricultural event returns in April.