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February 9, 2026
FOND DU LAC – Agriculture, one of Wisconsin’s top three industries, will take center stage at the 22nd annual Agriculture Showcase, March 22 at the Fond du Lac Fairgrounds.
Amy Ries, director of agricultural programs, Envision Greater Fond du Lac, said the family-friendly event highlights the vital role of agriculture, connecting consumers with products and innovations that impact daily life – from food to clothing to fuel.
“Our goal is to educate, and we want to make sure that consumers are connected with producers and that producers and vendors can share their agricultural story,” she said.
Ries said the “Celebrate Agriculture” theme highlights the county’s deep agricultural ties and has become central to the event’s identity – which has naturally evolved into a family-friendly agricultural experience.
From trade show to family-first experience
Part of that evolution, Ries said, has focused on staying relevant.
What was once primarily a producer-oriented show – featuring vendors such as farm insurance providers – she said, has shifted to provide an interactive experience for families.
However, Ries said the goal of the event – which is hosted by Envision’s Agri-Business Council, a program of 230 organizations guided by a 14-member advisory group – remains the same: to cultivate passion for agriculture in the community through education, promotion and partnerships.
And there’s plenty of fun to be had, she said.
Inside the Expo Building, Ries said visitors will find a large, interactive petting zoo presented by Whisper Hill Clydesdales Special Needs organization.
The setup, she said, includes a 30-foot corral where guests can interact with the animals at their comfort level.
Ries said Furrows to Fences will also be on site with a Percheron, highlighting the role of draft horses in agriculture and sustainable farming.
“It was neat to see how many people got close to the horse last year, as they had a wagon you could sit on,” she said. “Two years ago, [the horse] celebrated her birthday with a cake at the event.”
A taste of Fond du Lac County agriculture
Elsewhere at the event, Ries said producers will offer samples of sausage, cheese and white and chocolate milk – items the county has a robust concentration of.
Fond du Lac County’s favorable soil, water, climate and growing conditions, she said, contribute to the quality of its agricultural products.
“The meat and cheese retail spaces we have in this county are unbelievable,” she said. “We are very spoiled, because we don’t even know what bad cheese and sausage taste like. [All] those advantages allow us to feed our animals well to create quality products.”
For attendees 21 and older, Ries said local beer and wine vendors will offer samples.
“You can nibble your way through the cheese and sausage and have an alcoholic beverage or two,” she said. “If alcohol isn’t for you, we always offer white and chocolate milk, too.”
A thoughtfully designed experience
The showcase layout, Ries said, balances education with vendor participation.
With the Eastern Ridge Home Builders Association Home Show occupying about two-thirds of the venue, Ries said exhibits, sampling areas and hands-on features are positioned to allow families to move easily through the space.
Displays, she said, include:
- Skid loaders and utility vehicles from implement dealers
- Honey producers
- Water-quality organizations
- Farm Wisconsin Discovery Center
- The Fond du Lac Farm Bureau
- Fond du Lac Fire & Rescue
- Kerrigan Winery
- Other local businesses, such as Open Road Ranch, which offers tallow-based balm and lotion products.
Student-led horticulture and hydroponics displays – including hydroponic tower demonstrations – Ries said, are also featured, reflecting continued interest in modern growing methods.
The event’s family-focused approach, she said, aligns with current preferences for shared experiences.
“We found that by including the whole family, that’s what people like to do these days,” she said. “They want to find a place where everybody can have fun, and that is the Ag Showcase by far.”
Play, learn, discover
Ries said the Agri-Business Council’s expanded children’s area focuses on hands-on learning, with activities ranging from small-scale farm equipment to wagon pulling and corn dumping.
She said attendees can also try a “poop-scooping” station with realistic training props, an unexpectedly popular learning activity borrowed from the Fond du Lac County Fair.
Interactive educational games, such as matching canned goods to their source crops, Ries said, will engage visitors of all ages.
“The exhibits are super cool, and I love it because [there’s nothing better] than watching families working on the educational activities together and learning from them,” she said.
Ries said this year’s event will also include a ribbon cutting for new professionally designed educational exhibits.
Partnerships, she said, have expanded the event’s reach.
For the second year, Ries said the showcase runs alongside the Eastern Ridge Home Builders Association Home Show, giving attendees the chance to explore both events in a single visit.
“Sometimes it’s so much easier to collaborate and get people into one spot for two things,” she said. “Why not collaborate and have us together, if it makes sense?”
Long-standing commitment to ag education
Though the Agriculture Showcase is a highly visible highlight, Ries said it reflects a broader, long-standing effort to connect agriculture with the community.
Established in the early 1980s, she said the Agri-Business Council is uniquely housed within the chamber of commerce, an arrangement uncommon among agribusiness groups.
The council also developed the Agricultural Ambassador Program to educate both adults and youth on how agricultural products are produced, their nutritional value and the role agriculture plays in everyday life.
“The council set up the program because schools didn’t have current, accurate information about agriculture,” she said.
Recognizing that social studies often receives less attention than math or science, Ries said the council’s agricultural ambassadors step in to provide free, hands-on learning for students in K4 through eighth grade.
Their programs, she said, explore topics like nutrition, food safety, consumer habits and agricultural production, aiming to reach 10,000 students and connect them with the real-world impact of agriculture.
“We know that if you live in Wisconsin, you have a one in seven chance your job will be connected to agriculture,” she said.
Reaching students early, Ries said, allows ambassadors to plant seeds for long-term engagement.
Their lessons, she said, often lead to participation in FFA or 4-H while teaching a vital lesson: food and other essentials come from farms.
Most people are several generations removed from farming or have never been connected to agriculture at all, Ries said, meaning a small fraction – less than 2% – works to feed the entire country.
“That is mindblowing,” she said. “It’s important that people know where their food comes from.”
Education beyond the showcase
The council’s work extends to the Fond du Lac County Fair, where Ries said it joined with the Fond du Lac Agricultural Society to create both the Ag Education Center and the Mooternity Ward.
During the fair, Ries said the Recreation Building transforms into a comprehensive education hub with live births from cows brought in by Berklair Farms, other baby animals, interactive exhibits and the “Little Hands on the Farm” activity that guides children ages three to 10 through daily farm chores.
That exercise, she said, culminates in “selling back” what they collected to earn food stand money – a practical lesson demonstrating how farming is both a livelihood and a business.
“We teach them, ‘farmers don’t do farming for free,’” she said.
To keep classroom programs and events like the Agriculture Showcase free, Ries said the Agri-Business Council hosts a variety of fundraising activities throughout the year.
Breakfast on the Farm, she said, returns June 28, bringing the community together on the fairgrounds for a meal that combines local agriculture with hands-on learning while raising essential funds.
Each August, Ries said the council’s golf outing offers a nine-hole scramble designed to fit busy agribusiness schedules and celebrate the industry.
And the annual holiday Gift Box fundraiser highlights Fond du Lac County’s local products – including cheese, sausage, popcorn and more – allowing supporters to purchase curated boxes and have them shipped nationwide.
Ries said these initiatives complement the showcase and reflect the council’s focus on education, promotion and partnerships as the through‑line of its work.
The various programs’ outreach, she said, is impressive, and just the mere fact that Envision houses this program speaks volumes.
“I am humbled by the support of this county to have a program like this,” she said.
More details on the upcoming 2026 Ag Showcase can be found at envisiongreaterfdl.com.
