University of Guelph's Ridgetown Campus. (BlackburnNews.com file photo)University of Guelph's Ridgetown Campus. (BlackburnNews.com file photo)
Chatham

SW Ag Conference turns out another great year

Spring-like weather in January turned out to be a good thing, at least it was during the 26th annual Southwest Agricultural Conference.

The two-day event ended Friday and organizers are thrilled with how well it went.

As per usual, the event was held at the University of Guelph, Ridgetown campus. Typically the school is in need of constant clean-up, but this year's lack of snow turned out to be a bonus.

"The people normally that are cleaning the hallways are mopping snow and it's brutal! This was perfect weather, everybody was able to make it and [it was] such a great conference," said Peter Johnson, program co-chair. "The interaction, the networking, and the information that was presented were awesome."

Johnson said there were nearly 1,400 people in attendance for both Thursday and Friday.

"We wouldn't have a conference without everybody who shows up, so a big thank you to everyone," he said.

Overall, Johnson said they had great feedback from all of their sessions but a few popular ones were in regards to weather predictions, soybean production, and corn. The response to live-streaming was also well-received. Johnson said they're hoping to have the live-streaming feature grow in future years.

"The other cool thing about live-streaming is you get 30 days to go online and look at our recorded sessions," he said. "The downside is we have 45 sessions and we only recorded about 20, so you don't get everything."

The annual event is always sold out and tickets usually go fast. Those interested in next year's conference are encouraged to watch the website as registration usually opens around November 1. Their website can be found by clicking, here.

-With files from Cheryl Johnstone

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