The 2025 Sunbelt Ag Expo, one of the most anticipated agricultural events, is coming on 10.14-10.16. Everyone in the agricultural community, from seasoned professionals to curious students and amateurs, can’t miss this annual activity. This guide will introduce this celebration, highlighting its key features, the Teenage Competition, and the 2025 Farmer of the Year.
What is the Sunbelt AG Expo?
It is recognized as North America’s premier farm show. It’s far more than just an exhibition—it’s a dynamic and interactive platform showcasing the latest in agricultural technology, live equipment demonstrations, educational competitions, and industry networking. Every year, thousands of visitors converge here to explore the future of farming.
Highlights of the 2025 Sunbelt AG Expo
The 2025 Expo promises a diverse lineup of activities. Whether you’re an experienced farmer or a student just starting your journey in agriculture, you’ll find something here to spark your interest and expand your knowledge.
Live Field Demonstrations
This is a major highlight that sets the Expo apart. Don’t just look at the latest equipment—watch it work in a real-world setting. On a massive 530-acre working farm, you can see harvesting, tillage, and hay baling demonstrations, allowing you to compare different brands side-by-side as they tackle crops like cotton, peanuts, and corn. You can even see cutting-edge technology like autonomous tractors and spray drones in action.
Over 1,200 Exhibitors
The 100-acre exhibit area is packed with indoor and outdoor displays from leading companies. You’ll find everything from massive tractors and irrigation systems to the latest in precision farming software, seeds, and animal health products.
Educational Seminars
With over 300 seminars offered, you can gain valuable knowledge from university specialists and industry leaders. Topics cover a wide range, including beef cattle management, forestry, pond management, backyard gardening, and sustainable living.
Livestock Pavilions
Get an up-close look at top-quality animals in dedicated areas for beef cattle, horses, dairy, poultry, goats, and sheep. These sections often feature their own specialized demonstrations and health management seminars.
Test Drives and Ride & Drives
The Expo is an interactive experience. Many automotive and ATV exhibitors offer test tracks where you can get behind the wheel of the latest trucks and utility vehicles to see how they perform.
Antique Tractor Parade
A daily crowd-pleaser, this parade showcases beautifully restored tractors from throughout agricultural history, offering a nostalgic look at how farming has evolved.
Youth Competitions at the 2025 Sunbelt Ag Expo
The Sunbelt Ag Expo is more than just a trade show; it’s a vibrant training ground for the next generation of agricultural leaders. The youth competitions are designed to be exciting, hands-on experiences that build practical skills and ignite a passion for the industry.
FFA Ag Mechanics Contest
This is a competition where students build their agricultural projects out of metal or wood. They show their skills in welding, fabrication, and design.
This event is all about the skills needed to build, repair, and maintain farm equipment. Students might build a new gate, repair a trailer, or create a custom tool for a tractor. This is the heart of working with off-road machinery.
State FFA Tractor Driving Contest
In this event, students compete to see who can operate a tractor with the most skill, safety, and precision. They navigate through a challenging course.
This competition is entirely focused on the expert operation of off-road machinery. It directly tests a student’s ability to handle the equipment that is fundamental to farming.
Youth Educational Challenges
This is a quiz-style contest that tests students’ knowledge on different agricultural topics.
A major topic in agricultural education is mechanics—understanding how farm equipment works. Students are often tested on their knowledge of engines, hydraulics, and electrical systems.
Sunbelt Dairy Showdown
A contest focused on the dairy industry, which includes a live milking competition.
While the main event is milking, a modern dairy farm cannot operate without off-road machinery. Tractors are needed to haul feed, and loaders are used to clean barns. The entire industry is supported by this equipment.
The Drive to Succeed: Honoring the 2025 Farmer of the Year Finalists
As we prepare for the 2025 Sunbelt AG Expo, we honor the core of American agriculture: the farmers. The Swisher Farmer of the Year award highlights individuals whose innovation, stewardship, and resilience define modern farming. These leaders don’t just operate farms; they oversee complex, multi-generational businesses that supply food across the nation. Every successful harvest and healthy herd tells a story of hard work, smart choices, and dependable machinery that keeps going day after day.
Let’s meet the outstanding finalists for 2025.
Steve Hopkins – Virginia
A seventh-generation farmer, Steve Hopkins manages a diverse 1200+ acre cattle, crop, and poultry operation with his sons. He is a leader in both marketing and conservation, implementing extensive no-till practices and fencing waterways to protect the land. His work with the Central Virginia Cattlemen’s Association showcases his commitment to elevating the entire industry, ensuring a sustainable legacy for future generations.
Harrell Overman – North Carolina
For over 40 years, Harrell Overman has guided his family’s 2200-acre row crop and swine operation. A true innovator, he has diversified into solar energy and is installing methane digesters to create renewable energy from his 84,000-head hog business. Harrell’s focus on sustainability and adapting to challenges ensures his sixth-generation farm will thrive for generations to come.
Kent Hamilton – Georgia
As CEO of an 8500-acre fruit and vegetable enterprise spanning multiple states and Mexico, Kent Hamilton embodies vertical integration. From seed to shelf, his family-operated business controls every step, using data-driven technology and sustainable practices like recycled packaging. This comprehensive approach ensures Southern Valley delivers quality produce while maintaining meticulous control over its brand and environmental footprint.
James “Jim” Alderman – Florida
A fourth-generation farmer, Jim Alderman, masterfully carved a niche by transitioning his 1200-acre farm to organic vegetables, competing against imports. He pioneered air-freighting vine-ripened tomatoes and established a Florida Panther Conservation Bank, proving that profitability and profound environmental stewardship can go hand-in-hand. His model is a masterclass in market innovation and ecological respect.
Jeremy Allen – Arkansas
From a small cattle and hay business, Jeremy Allen has built a diversified agricultural empire. His operations now include a large-scale trucking company, a custom feed mill with robotic bagging, and a retail mercantile store. Jeremy’s entrepreneurial spirit shows how identifying community needs and vertically integrating can transform a traditional farm into a multi-faceted, thriving enterprise that serves hundreds of other producers.
Dr. Issac “Nealy” Barrett, Jr. – Alabama
Combining his expertise as a veterinarian with his heritage as a fifth-generation farmer, Dr. Nealy Barrett runs a fully integrated cattle operation. From a 400-head cow-calf herd to backgrounding thousands of stockers and direct-to-consumer beef sales, his focus is on herd health and data-driven decisions. His work exemplifies how specialized knowledge can optimize every link in the supply chain.
Jeff Wilson – South Carolina
On a farm operating since 1882, Jeff Wilson and his sons have transformed their historic land into a modern marvel of diversification. They grow everything from cotton to the state’s largest pumpkin crop, marketing through their retail stores and agritourism events. A lifelong conservationist, Jeff has implemented no-till practices and efficient irrigation, ensuring the farm remains productive and protected.
The Unseen Partner in Every Field
A common thread in these stories is the hum of machinery—tractors, balers, loaders—forming the steel backbone of operations. For leaders pushing efficiency and sustainability, equipment failure isn’t an option, as downtime can disrupt harvests and delay planting. FridayParts exists to keep off-road machinery running smoothly, vital for farm success. Farmers like Steve Hopkins, Kent Hamilton, and Jeremy Allen rely on reliable, high-quality parts—hydraulics, starters, filters—to keep machines in the field. Celebrating agricultural pioneers at Sunbelt AG Expo, FridayParts is proud to be a trusted partner, committed to providing durable, affordable parts to help farmers maintain equipment, protect legacies, and shape agriculture’s future.
In Summary
It’s our honor to announce that we will exhibit at the 2025 Sunbelt Ag Expo! We warmly invite you to visit us at our booth, AB3-91, from October 14-16. You can find high-quality, reliable parts for all your agricultural and off-road machinery in one convenient location. Besides, our professional experts will help you solve tricky problems or search for the right part in person.
We look forward to seeing you there. For more trade show information, you’re welcome to visit FridayParts.com.
