Wisconsin's Largest: Not Your Father's Cow Town

What recent event, with airtight security measures in place, employed 15 full-time interpreters who spoke 14 different languages, and did not take place in New York City?

If you guessed the World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis., you were right. And if that wasn't your first answer, you might not know as much as you could about either the agricultural tradeshow sector or the dairy industry.

The Oct. 4–8 show at the Alliant Energy Center of Dane County is much more sophisticated than your typical dairy show. A run-of-the-mill dairy show doesn't attract 2,513 international attendees from 81 countries and 65,000 total visitors — which is what the World Dairy Expo did this month.

The show, No. 85 on the Tradeshow Week 200 and currently Wisconsin's largest tradeshow, is a forum for dairy farmers and dairy equipment professionals to showcase dairy cattle and products to attendees interested in genetics, herd health, dairy technology — and biosecurity.

Since foot-and-mouth disease broke out in England in 2001, biosecurity measures at the show have been exceedingly rigid, not in small part because participants mingle with 2,212 dairy cows.

International visitors arriving from an FMD-infected country have strict instructions before traveling to the show: Don't go near the farm for five days beforehand, wear clean clothes and sanitize your shoes.

That's not all. When international attendees arrive at the show, specially designated international registration officials physically examine clothing and shoes, and disinfect items if necessary.

The 825 dairy cattle exhibitors (from 39 states, but none from abroad) also have strict regulations, which include steam cleaning their trailers before bringing cattle to the show. (The show also had 681 commercial exhibiting companies representing 22 countries and 43 states.)

According to Tom McKittrick, general manager of World Dairy Expo (a Madison-based nonprofit group), the show's regulations were developed in cooperation with the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

McKittrick said the rules are essential and consistently respected by show participants because "dairy cattle producers around the world understand the importance of biosecurity and the value of healthy animals. Therefore, taking reasonable biosecurity measures is a priority."

Plus, added World Dairy Expo Sales Manager John Rozum, "Those cattle are among the best dairy animals in the world, and are worth tens of millions of dollars. If we were just a tradeshow, that really wouldn't be a concern."

The show management team has even uploaded streaming video and audio of its biosecurity briefing to the expo's Web site.

World Dairy Expo is savvy in other respects. Management this year established a blog called the World Dairy Diary, featuring a show summary and information about exhibitors.

Also, the 2005 show's theme was the Art of Dairy, which offered participants tastes of refinement, including an art gallery, amongst the cattle.

And the art collection wasn't too shabby, said Kevin Gould, assistant manager of business for the Alliant center. "Whoa! Have they had some great art here," he said, adding, "It's just one more piece that shows the diversity and interest in dairy. It's another element to a great show."

The show's annual theme is imperative for the show, Rozum said, "to give our exhibitors something to latch onto."

Art aside, Gould said he is more impressed by the show every year. "It's got a lot of class," he said. "For an animal-type show, it's a very high-caliber show."

World Dairy Expo has taken place at the Alliant center since it opened in 1966. The center's exhibition hall currently offers 155,000 square feet of exhibit space. However, the 2004 show used space inside the facility's coliseum and arena, along with outdoor space inside temporary structures, a total of approximately 260,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space.

"We've been at the same facility for 39 years, and we do use every possible square inch. We are really cramped," Rozum said, who added he has "a waiting list of about 200 companies who can't get in."

The AEC has no immediate plans to expand, Gould said. However, he added, the venue will conduct a study this fall to analyze its competitive position and determine whether an expansion should be on the management team's plate.

Gould said the last AEC expansion in 1995, which added 120,000 sq. ft. of exhibit space, was prompted by venue users, most notably World Dairy Expo. "They needed expansion badly," he said.

No matter the venue size, World Dairy Expo isn't going anywhere, Rozum said.

"We've stayed there out of tradition," he said. "We need to be easy to access central to the dairy industry and be in a city that is capable of handling all our attendees. That's a tough order to fill."

World Dairy Expo in 2003 signed a 5-year contract with two 3-year options with the venue.

The show is much appreciated by the city, of course.

"We're very fortunate to have it here," said Deb Archer, president and CEO of the Greater Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau. "We're very proud of it."

Gould noted, "We think it's a great opportunity for the Madison area to have this show; not just what it means to the facility, but to the whole community in terms of economic impact."

The 2005 show brought an estimated 42,000 room nights to the region.

The show is especially valuable for Madison, Archer added, because of its global draw.

"The international attendees are obviously an integral part of the event's success," she said. "They have the largest financial impact on the community," because they tend to stay in town the longest, she added.