Manitoba Ag Days returns to Brandon’s Keystone Centre on Tuesday, Jan. 17 after a two-year hiatus.
The show is a paid, ticketed event and tickets can be purchased at www.agdays.com/tickets. Early bird tickets are $15 per day or $20 at the door. Child tickets (17 and under) are free, but still required. Three-day passes are available for $40.
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Why ticketed? In 2022, when pandemic-related health measures were in place, organizers decided to sell tickets to ensure an accurate head count, said Ag Days media coordinator Teresa Vallotton.
Those arrangements were already in place when organizers moved to a virtual format. They decided to retain the ticketed system for 2023, as well as extra security to ensure people feel their health and safety needs are respected, Vallotton said.
Ag Days is a not-for-profit event, and any surplus will be paid forward through the Ag Days Gives Back Fund, event organizers said in a Dec. 29 news release.
A kickoff breakfast will be served in the Great Western Roadhouse from 7:30 to 9 a.m. Jan. 17.
This year’s theme is “Farmer Health, Safety and Wellness.” Along with wellness and safety-themed talks and virtual reality experiences, attendees can support the Manitoba Farmer Wellness program through the purchase of Ag Days T-shirts.
The wellness program provides no-cost counselling for farmers and farm families with mental health professions who have agriculture and rural backgrounds.
The Manitoba Ag Day’s Adventure with Ag in the Classroom will take place Jan. 17, 18 and 19. Students can learn about food, food production and how food gets on their table. The theme is “Agriculture – Think Global, Act Local.”
Tickets are for sale in the 50/50 draw to benefit the Ag Days Gives Back Community Giving Program. Last year’s winner took home nearly $13,000. Tickets can be purchased at agdays.com or at the venue.
Manitoba Ag Days Gives Back will announce this years’ recipients on Jan. 17. Eight community fire departments will each receive a $2,000 grant. Three $1,000 post-secondary scholarships will be awarded, and Ag in the Classroom Manitoba will receive a $10,000 Education and Leadership Grant to carry out the Manitoba Ag Days Adventure with students.
The 10 keynote speakers for 2023 are:
- Peter Zeihan – Agriculture at the End of the World
- J.P. Gervais – Inflation Navigation
- Evan Shout – Change is Constant
- Josh Linville – Understanding the International Fertilizer Landscape
- Ryan Boyd – Can we Reclaim the Prairie Landscape?
- Machinery Pete – Used Equipment is the new “NEW”
- Big Daddy Tazz – Out of My Mind
- Chris Beaudry – Farm, Hockey, Stress – Discovering Your Path for Today
- Jon Montgomery – Belief – It Does a Body Good!
- Mady Adamson – Why I Wanted my Class to Learn About Agriculture
More than 70 other speakers will discuss topics including agronomy, technology, equipment and markets.
