With 10,000 people expected to be in attendance, Ohio State will host its 60th Farm Science Review Tuesday. Credit: Katie Good | Asst. Photo Editor
Ohio State will host its 60th Farm Science Review Tuesday through Thursday at Molly Caren Agricultural Center in London, Ohio, to educate attendees with new agriculture technology and learn from the industry’s experts.
Nick Zachrich, FSR manager, said when the event first started in 1963, it was a way for the agriculture industry to show off its new technology, and it gave Ohio State a chance to showcase its research.
Zachrich said what started out with around 100 exhibitors on 20 acres of land now has hundreds of exhibitors spanning 90 acres. There are over 100,000 people expected to attend, he said.
According to the Farm Science Review website, this year’s event will have over 600 commercial exhibitors from across North America, and several million dollars worth of machinery will be displayed.
In addition to the exhibitors from the agricultural industry, many Ohio State extensions — community-based outreach units from the College of Food, Agricultural,and Environmental Sciences — and departments have their own displays for outreach and recruitment, Zachrich said.
This farm show is one of only a few in the U.S., Zachrich said, and it is the only one of its kind.
“There’s no other show that does what we do as a university for education, in one place at one time, like we do here,” Zachrich said.
Zachrich said the FSR is a great resource for students to find a potential career. He said many companies at the event are hiring, looking for young people with specialized knowledge, even if they lack experience with agriculture.
“In many cases now, we need the people that are highly technical that do things in computer science, in engineering and in business,” Zachrich said. “And they do not necessarily need that agricultural knowledge — that can be trained and learned—but we just need very talented people in the industry.”
Zachrich said there is a career-exploration fair Wednesday at which students and mid-career professionals can connect with 20 leading companies in the agriculture industry.
Tim Sullivan, a third-year in agricultural systems management, said he’s been going to the FSR since he was a kid, so it’s great to be involved with the event as a student now because it provides opportunities to gain experience in large-scale event planning.
“It really allows students to get a hands-on experience in event planning and to get a hands-on experience in putting a world-class show on display,” Sullivan said.
Zachrich said this year’s FSR will allow attendees to see how far agriculture technology has developed in a short period of time.
“We can look at the technology even from the last five or 10 years and see how much we’ve advanced and developed, and to think of how much more it will be advanced and developed in the next five to 10,” Zachrich said.
Sullivan said the FSR is a great opportunity for people to learn more about how their food is grown.
“I think there’s a lot to learn, and I think it’s an industry that people should get excited about because it’s where their food is coming from,” Sullivan said.
