News Releases

(GREENEVILLE, Tenn.) - Tennessee Commissioner of Agriculture Ken Givens and University of Tennessee Vice President for Agriculture Jack Britt were among the dignitaries attending the Kickoff Celebration for the Southeastern Expo 2004.

Expected to draw thousands of visitors, the Southeastern Expo 2004 is to be a premier educational event and trade show focused on agricultural marketing techniques. Scheduled for Friday, June 18, and Saturday, June 19, 2004, the Expo will be hosted by the University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service and Experiment Station and the Greene County Partnership Agribusiness Committee. The Expo is supported in part by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture through an Ag Tag Grant.

The Greene County Fairgrounds and the UT Tobacco Experiment Station are to be the main venues for the Expo, and targeted participants are commercial agricultural producers, part-time or hobby farmers, and those with an interest in gardening, lawn care, landscaping and turf management. "Something for Everyone" is the theme organizers plan for the event.

The Expo will include exhibits, demonstrations, and interactive sessions on topics such as Internet-based marketing and managing risk in agricultural marketing

Commodities and enterprises to be emphasized include forages, beef cattle, horses, goats, tobacco, fruits and vegetables,turf and landscaping, agri-tourism, wildlife and forestry, aquaculture, and specialty crops.

A discovery center will be available for children of all ages.

Opportunities for corporate sponsorship are available.

The kickoff was held at the UT Tobacco Experiment Station's Gosnell Tobacco Market Preparation Facility after the morning's Tobacco and Specialty Crops Field Day. A number of representatives from Greene County civic groups and agricultural industries were also on hand to announce preparations for the 2004 event.

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Contacts: Co-chairs of the Expo Steering Committee
Steve Hale, County Extension Director, 423-798-1710
Jake Haun, Greene County Farm Service Agency, 423-638-4771 ext. 2