The World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wisconsin, is a week-long event featuring cows from all over the world brought here by people who come to show off their products, livestock, and ideas related to the dairy industry. It is the biggest trade-show that we’ve ever attended. We had a tremendous time exploring the numerous buildings chock full of countless exhibits, including the coliseum housing the judged shows. And we never did see the whole thing by the time we called it a day!
The Dairy Expo can get expensive as admission is $10 for anyone over age 13. But parking is included in the price! Either bring your own food or explore the offerings carefully before purchasing something. We spent $1.50 for a small cup of decent ice cream only to discover that another booth offered large chocolate shakes for just $1!
Tip: Passes are available from exhibitors, so if you know anyone showing a cow, or running a booth, see what they can do for you. (Thanks, Steven, for our free passes!)
The Expo can be broken down into four main areas: the Exhibit Halls, the Animal Barns, the Coliseum, and Outside.
The Exhibit halls have all the great trade booths with many fun freebies. There are obvious give-aways, like pens and candy bars, at most booths. Select booths have ‘secret’ giveaways- limited supply special items that they’ve tucked away. The exhibitors only give these to people that ask for them, or that engage the booth sincerely. Last year, Bluey scored a wonderful stuffed cow when the young ladies running a booth were overwhelmed by his charm. This year, both Bluey and Plum got the inside edge on a high quality toy pickup truck from a trade-man that was pleased with our kids’ questions about his product. Bluey and Plum were thrilled to take their toy trucks home! Once you start talking and making friends at the Expo, good things will happen.
The Animal Barns host the hundreds of cows from all over the world. We loved walking through the barns and meeting the cows and owners. There is much camaraderie and dedication to witness in the barns. Most of the farmers are very friendly and will tell you all about their cows, if you give them a chance. You’ll also get an opportunity to see how the cows get primped and preened for their trip to the show ring.
The Coliseum contains the show rings as well as a number of additional exhibit booths. It’s a good place to take a break from walking around by watching some beautiful cows get paraded around.
The rear Outside areas are mainly food tents and scattered picnic tables. The front outside areas and the parking lot in front of the main exhibit hall are crammed full of various pieces of impressive farm equipment. There is no shade to be found so we’d recommend you explore this area early in the day.
We encourage you to strike up conversation with all members of the World Dairy Expo. These interactions will allow for you to learn more about this industry and the lives of the folks within it. We were utterly exhausted by our day at the Expo. It was not only a fabulous educational experience, but it was also a ton of fun!