Tulare, California — The World Ag Expo happens every February in Tulare, California. Organizers say this event rakes in millions of dollars for Tulare County. The show is made up of 1,271 exhibitors, and over 100,000 people flock to the International Agri-Center annually.
Every year, there is new innovation, from new companies and inventors Ag is constantly changing. There are many presentations people can expect to see, giving attendees a better understanding of the new technology in Ag.
Chairman Stan Creelman says there is something for everyone. Stan has been coming to the Expo since the 1970s. He says the local economic impact exceeds $56 million. People from all over the country and the world visit Tulare County to see the latest agricultural and farming-related products. “We are the core of agriculture, the Valley here,” says Creelam. “Over 360 commodities are represented on the showgrounds, so if it’s made for agriculture, it’s probably in here somewhere.”
Among the worldwide exhibitors are some local companies as well. GUSS Automation is based in Kingsburg. “It’s really exciting — our town is pretty excited about us right there and just getting us in the heart of all our community,” says co-founder Gary Thomspon. GUSS stands for Global Unmanned Spray System. The company makes the autonomous Electric GUSS sprayer, which is used to spray fields with nutrients, fertilizers, and pesticides.
The new product is one of the Top 10 New Product Winners and is set to be recognized at the Expo this week. One person can control up to eight GUSS sprayers. “We have been dealing with a shortage of ag labor for many, many years, and it’s just hard for us to get the work done that we need some innovations like this to really help us, really help our crews, our existing spray managers and supervisors to get work done and be more efficient on what they do,” said Thomspon.
