Agrilevante: the "beacon" for Mediterranean agriculture

Agrilevante 2025 is all set to take place in grand style. On display at the Bari fair grounds from 9 to 12 October, the exhibition of agricultural machinery and equipment is increasingly eventful and increasingly “Mediterranean”. FederUnacoma (the Italian Agricultural Machinery Manufaturer's Federation), - organizer of this biennial event now in its eighth edition - has already allocated 75% of the available exhibition space, having opened registrations only in January, and expects to be“sold out” in just a short while, with over 25,000 square meters of net space occupied by a total number of exhibiting industries no less than the 350 of the last edition, coming from 20 countries.

“The technologies on display cover all types of goods, from tractors to operating machines, from equipment to components - explained the General Manager of FederUnacoma, Simona Rapastella, during the international press conference held this morning at the CIHEAM in Bari - but they all have a common denominator, Mediterranean agriculture, with its typical and superb products”.

Arable crops, vineyards, orchards, horticultural production and livestock farming are present throughout the Mediterranean area and require new generation technologies, capable of making farms productive, preserving biodiversity and overcoming problems such as the lack of water resources or the particular structure of the soils that characterize vast areas of the basin.

The exhibition, which is aimed at farmers, contractors, agricultural and agricultural mechanics technicians, and which attracts economic operators from Mediterranean Europe, the Balkans, the Middle East, North Africa and even sub-Saharan Africa - the 2023 event saw a total of 95,000 visitors, including more than 4,000 foreigners from 60 countries, while the official foreign delegations organized in collaboration with the Italian Trade Agency (ICE) saw operators from 27 countries - is introducing some important innovations this year. Alongside the traditional divisions and the Livestock Show, which is organized in collaboration with ARA Puglia and which features livestock of the most prized breeds on display in the vast area in front of the New Pavilion, this year's event features a new Showcase called Levante Green, dedicated to gardening and green care machinery, and the new Extend area, dedicated to institutional bodies. There is also a so-called REAL Area, reserved for agricultural robotics with exhibitions and field demonstrations of robots and highly automated digital systems.

“An exhibition of this level – stated Simona Rapastella – constitutes not only a promotional and commercial platform, but also a political and strategic one, offering national and local bodies, the university world and professional organizations opportunities for discussion on the most current issues”.
“The Mediterranean area is taking on an increasingly important role – said the General Manager of FederUnacoma – and the theme of cooperation and policies to support the primary sector is increasingly important in a perspective that extends to all the countries in the basin”.

The Agrilevante/Machinery for Mediterranean Agriculture Competition will be given a lot of attention, presenting both the Agricultural Processing Award and the Green Care Award.

The conference agenda will touch on technical topics, such as olive growing, advanced digital applications, the welfare of farmed animals, as well as political-economic topics, such as those relating to trade prospects between the countries on the northern and southern shores of the Mediterranean, the implementation of the Mattei Plan for Africa, and the role of professional training centers.

“A source of pride for Agrilevante 2025 - Simona Rapastella concluded - is the presence, for the first time in Bari, of the Club of Bologna, the prestigious association of experts and academics comming from all over the world to assess agricultural mechanization scenarios and suggest an agenda of priorities that will also prove useful for the purposes of planning in political settings”.