The history of Manitoba Ag Days

Details

Published on Friday, January 16, 2015

By Kristen Phillips

Media Coordinator MB Ag Days

Did you know the first Ag Days show was held in 1978?  Making the 2015 show the 38th annual.  However, in 1978 it wasn’t called Ag Days it was called The Weed Fair. 

It was a much smaller event then being only one day in duration.  It was held in the Keystone Center but at the time it was a much smaller Keystone Center; being only about 245,000 sq.ft. in total. 

In the winter of 1978 a second Weed Fair was held in Winnipeg at the Convention Center to try to draw more people into the event.  Back then, the event was considered very successful having 60 exhibitors and about 3,500 people attended total for the two events.

In 1979, the Weed Fair expanded from a one day show to a two day show in both Winnipeg and Brandon.

During the 1980s, several very successful events were held and the show continued to grow as the popularity of the event grew stronger.  Attendance reached the 6,000 person level between the two – two day event shows.

In 1988 the event had moved completely away from its original weed control focus to become a much more general agricultural show.  To reflect this move, the name changed from the Weed Fair to Manitoba Ag Days.

In the late 1980s the New Inventions Competition was added to the show with the hopes of showcasing new ideas and a place where the latest technology could be on display.

In 1992,  the event was held in Winnipeg for the last time and the decision to run one show in Brandon was easy.

In 1993, the event moved to Brandon permanently and expanded into a three day show – which it still continues to be today.  The expansion of the show coincided with the biggest expansion ever of the Keystone Center in 1992; with 165,000 sq.ft. of space being added to the complex.  The three day show drew a crowd of 30,000 people.

In 1995, a farm safety component was added to the show called the Farm Safety Expo; this component is still alive and significant to the show today.

In 1996 the first Bull Congress was added to the show; showcasing live animals as part of the show.

In 2005 the Keystone Center underwent its next major renovation and added another 100,000 sq.ft. to its complex including the Canad Inn hotel.  This again added to the expansion of our show allowing an additional 100 exhibitors space to showcase their products.

The Keystone Center is currently 540,000 sq.ft. all under one roof – making us the largest indoor farm show in Canada.  The entire Keystone Center Grounds is approximately 90 acres; so there is ample room for parking and outdoor exhibitors at the show.  We now have well over 500 exhibitors that participate in the three day event and we bring in 38,000 to 40,000 people to the show over the course of the three days.

Although we have some construction to deal with during the 2015 show, we were able to accommodate all of our exhibitors and we did not have to exclude anyone from the show.  We thank everyone for their cooperation and understanding.

Ag Days is a non-profit organization that survives solely on the revenues from exhibitor fees and sponsorship.  We have never charged an admission fee and will continue this tradition into the future.  We want everyone that wants to take in the show to have the opportunity to do so.

We are looking forward to another successful event January 20, 21 and 22, 2015.We hope you will join us.