EIMA International, the international exhibition of agricultural machinery, is staged at Bologna's exhibition centre from November 6 - 10. — Photo courtesy of FederUnacoma

By Hoàng Hà

BOLOGNA — EIMA 2024, the 46th annual international agricultural machinery exhibition has begun in Italy, with Vietnamese companies in attendance.

The expo, which will run until November 10, has over 1,750 participating industries, 700 of which are foreign, covering every market segment.

Organised into 14 product sectors and five thematic shows : Components, Digital, Energy, Green and Hydrotech, EIMA offers a countless opportunities to increase agricultural productivity while drastically reducing impacts on the environment. 

This international exhibition, organised by Italian Agicultural Machinary Manufacturers Federation (FederUnacoma), shows machinery and technologies for agriculture, forestry, livestock farming and greenery maintenance. 

There are cutting-edge vehicles, machinery and advanced digital systems for an increasingly scientific agriculture industry connected to the service system and other production sectors.

A delegation of Vietnamese businesses, organised by the Italian Trade Agency in Việt Nam, are visiting EIMA in the hope of finding partners supplying advanced machines and technologies for development of modern agriculture in Việt Nam.

EIMA 2024 marks the tenth time that Vietnamese businesses have participated in the exhibition.

Lê Hồng Giang, director of GALAN Co.,LTD meets the representative of an Italian company at the B2B meeting which runs on the sidelines of EIMA 2024 for all enterprises at the exhibition. —VNS Photo Hoàng Hà

Lê Hồng Giang, director of GALAN Co.,LTD - a company specialising in trading machinery, equipment and spare parts, said visiting EIMA 2024, he will meet old partners and also seek for new ones from Italian machinery manufacturers at the exhibition.

"Italian companies have distributed their products to Việt Nam via many channels, but now they expect to set up sale agents in Việt Nam," Giang told Việt Nam News.  

At this event, Giang expects to find out the types of machines that can be suitable for Vietnamese customers in terms of quality and price.

"In the world, Italian agricultural machinery is leading in terms of quality," Giang said.

In addition, he said that EIMA is also a chance for him to learn about global agricultural trends which can be brought back and used in Vietnam. 

“The EIMA international exhibition raises expectations ever higher by offering technological solutions to the great challenges of agriculture and the environment,” said the General Director of FederUnacoma, Simona Rapastella.

Population growth, climate change, polluting emissions, animal welfare and the protection of biodiversity - explained Rapastella - are all crucial issues for the future of the planet and can only be addressed with a new generation of agro-mechanical technologies.

There are approximately 60,000 models of vehicles, equipment and components from 50 countries on display in the Bologna exhibition centre.

In addition, the director of FederUnacoma has also stressed the technical content of the exhibition, with numerous previews and new products presented by the manufacturers and EIMA Campus where eleven Universities are represented, together with research centres and training facilities.

Over the five days, many representatives of the government and institutions will be present, as will be delegations of European and national parliamentarians and diplomats from foreign countries, all with the aim of learning about the most suitable technological solutions for the different regions of the world and taking part in the discussion on agricultural models, on the economic and geopolitical variables that influence trade, and on cooperation strategies.

At this year's EIMA event there will be a lot of space given to digital and robotic technologies and to the applications of AI and Big Data. Trends which will make it possible to connect the activity of agricultural companies to weather forecasting systems, mapping and control of territories and the monitoring of products for health purposes, management of agro-industrial supply chains, distribution to markets, as well as control of the operating parameters of machinery for the purposes of technical assistance and safety at work.

“Modern mechanisation thus allows companies to remain competitive and to keep pace with the ecological needs of the planet and allows agriculture to be included within a macro-system that involves everyone, from consumers to institutions, and even the world of school and training,” said Rapastella. 

“This is why this exhibition is no longer merely an 'industry' event but rather an 'innovation factory', open to agro-industrial supply chains and related economic sectors and very much looking towards the future." — VNS