EIMA 2024, a bridge between Italy and India

The 46th edition of EIMA International, the world exhibition of agricultural machinery to be held in Bologna from 6 to 10 November, was presented in Bangalore. The event is an important reference for the rapidly expanding agriculture of India. The Asian country, the world’s leading market for tractors, is focusing on latest generation mechanical vehicles.

The launch events dedicated to EIMA 2024, the world exhibition of agricultural mechanics scheduled in Bologna from 6 to 10 November, continue. After Birmingham (Great Britain), Bologna (Italy), Doha (Qatar), Thessaloniki (Greece) and Zaragoza (Spain), the Bolognese event was also presented in Bangalore, as part of EIMA Agrimach, with a press conference. Speakers at the press conference were the director of the ICE office in Mumbai, Andrea Quattrocchi; the president of FederUnacoma, Mariateresa Maschio; the deputy general director of FederUnacoma, Fabio Ricci and the head of the Federation’s events office, Davide Gallarate. In opening the conference, director Quattrocchi underlined the long collaboration between the ICE Agency and FederUnacoma aimed at promoting technical and commercial collaboration between Italy and other countries. “One of the missions of the Federation – recalled Mariateresa Maschio – is to organise exhibition events that allow the supply and demand of agricultural technologies to meet. FederUnacoma events have a strong international character and EIMA in particular looks at emerging markets with particular attention to the increasingly strategic ones in the Asian area”.

“The opening of the turnstiles is still 8 months away but the next EIMA already presents itself today with the caliber of a great event. More than 1,500 manufacturers, 450 of which are foreign, have already formalised their participation in the Bolognese event. Many others will be added between now and November, so – Davide Gallarate said in the press conference – we expect to entirely occupy the exhibition area of the Bologna exhibition centre”. The influx of visitors is expected to be very significant, from Italy but, above all, from abroad. In fact, over the five days of the event, 450 official delegates from 80 countries and visitors and buyers from 150 countries are expected in Bologna. The organisers of FederUnacoma therefore aim to confirm the record turnout of 2022, when more than 327 thousand visitors crowded the exhibition spaces of the Bologna Fair. Meanwhile, EIMA 2024 can already boast a record: that of the breadth of the range of technologies on display. In the 14 specialised sectors (from tractors to operating machines, from equipment for working the soil to specialised vehicles for animal husbandry and forestry) and in the five thematic halls of the event (components, bioenergy, irrigation, advanced electronics and gardening and care of greenery) in fact over 50 thousand models are on display, capable of satisfying the demand for mechanisation for every model of agriculture. Some of these – added Gallarate – will be able to be observed in action thanks to the dynamic events in the areas set up outside the pavilions, including the arena for the show of the Tractor of the Year finalist tractors, the demonstration area for the bioenergy supply chains, the area for testing vehicles for landscaping, and the new space called REAL, dedicated to robots, drones and highly automated systems for agriculture.

The next edition of EIMA will also be an important opportunity for discussion on trends in agriculture and global agricultural mechanics. From 6 to 10 November, stakeholders, public decision makers, professionals, university professors and researchers will analyse technical, economic and political issues affecting the two sectors in Bologna. The calendar of events is packed with no fewer than 150, including conferences, seminars, conventions and workshops.

Breadth of range, innovation, internationalisation – traditional strong points of the Bolognese event – make EIMA International an important reference for Indian farmers and buyers, who have always been present at the Bolognese event and are also expected in large numbers at the November event. “For six years the Indian tractor market has been the first in the world in terms of number of registered vehicles; for the past three years – recalled the deputy general director of FederUnacoma, Fabio Ricci – unit sales in the twelve months consistently exceed the figure of 900 thousand units. From 2021 to today, the country alone covers 40% of the total tractors sold in the world.” The development of agricultural mechanisation in India was not only quantitative, as the sector statistics suggest, but also qualitative. Extending over an area of over 3.2 million square kilometres and therefore characterised by very diverse pedo-climatic conditions – it was recalled during the conference – the subcontinent is adopting more sustainable cultivation techniques, oriented towards the healthiness of production, the protection of environment and the preservation of natural resources.

The transition towards “greener” agriculture has directed demand towards more innovative means, i.e. towards machinery capable of optimising the use of production factors and increasing yields. Precisely those technologies that will be the protagonists of the 46th edition of EIMA International from 6 to 10 November.