Marketing is a necessity in any type of business, the firewood industry included. Yet, it can be difficult to advertise the functions and capabilities of a 74 HP wood processor with just a picture and some words.
Videos are fine and well, but nothing will give prospective customers a true feel for your product like a live demonstration.
Hmmm… If only there was a place where forestry and lumber companies could display their products in front of interested customers…
Oh, yea, there are numerous forestry and logging trade shows across the country for that exact purpose.
Here is a list of the BEST trade shows and expos for those in the forestry, lumber, and/or firewood industry looking to gain maximum exposure for their product.
10. - National Farm Machinery Show
Taking place in the 1.2 million sq. ft. Kentucky Exposition Center, the National Farm Machinery Show is the largest indoor farm show in America.
Yes, the expo is geared toward farming equipment, but with 900 booths, there is sure to be plenty of forestry and firewood processing equipment.
The trade show has a rich history dating back to 1965, when “a few hundred farmers, salesmen and crop experts gathered in the Kentucky Fair & Exposition Center to start a farm show.”
A few years later in 1969, they introduced the Championship Tractor Pull, which is now America’s oldest tractor pull and still very popular among show-goers and tractor enthusiasts.
The next National Farm Machinery Show is from February 14, 2023, to the 17.
9. - Ag Progress Days
With one of the larger Agricultural Sciences programs in the country, it makes sense that Pennsylvania State University holds not one, but two agricultural trade shows each year.
Ag Progress Days is the perfect hybrid of agriculture and forestry products, with active demonstrations, like agricultural safety, and equipment demonstrations.
About 400 exhibitors come each year from the United States and Canada. In 2023, they expect 40,000 attendees, with 60% of them in agriculture or a related profession.
For those planning on bringing the family, do it! There are numerous youth activities, like the corn maze and wildlife exhibits.
8. - Timber Processing and Energy Expo
The Timber Processing and Energy Expo is heaven for a sawmill operator.
The 2023 show attracted over 110 different mill operations across America that exhibited their products to 1,200 attendees from 15 different countries.
Hosted in Portland, Oregon, the show’s exhibitors are mostly from the Northwest.
Because of the show’s somewhat niche focus, loggers and firewood sellers may want to save their money and exhibit elsewhere.
Bonus Points: The Timber Processing and Energy Expo has a beer garden.
Video: LMI Technologies
7. - Great Lakes Logging and Heavy Equipment Expo
The Great Lakes Logging and Heavy Equipment Expo is hosted in Escanaba, Michigan.
This show is a must for forestry and firewood professionals across the Midwest region, as the trade show focuses specifically on firewood processing and logging equipment.
Video: Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association
Exhibitors display and demo everything from chainsaws to commercial firewood processors. For only $20 you will have access to all of these products for three days.
The upcoming Great Lakes Logging and Heavy Equipment Expo will be from September 7, 2023, to the 9.
6. - PA Timber Show
Another great show hosted by Pennsylvania State University, the PA Timber Show showcases forestry and logging equipment with a heavy focus on live demonstrations:
The Pennsylvania Timber Show aims to put attendees "in the driver's seat" with hands-on demonstrations of state-of-the-art machinery. This is an opportunity for forest-product companies to enhance their business and production practices, as well as shop for goods and services from commercial vendors, all in one convenient location.
The show covers 50 acres of land with indoor and outdoor booths as well as “in-the-woods” equipment demonstrations.
Photo: agsci.psu.edu
The PA Timber Show is located close to the center of Pennsylvania - a state home to 2,700 forest product companies and more than 500,000 forest landowners - making travel easy for exhibitors from PA and surrounding states.
Lastly, but certainly not least (for exhibitors), the trade show offers free forklift services.
5. - Forest Products Machinery and Equipment Expo
Just the location of Nashville, Tennessee will send business owners packing and on their way to exhibit, if only because of what the city has to offer.
That’s not why the Forest Products Machinery and Equipment Expo is hosted in Nashville:
With nearly one-third of U.S. Forested Land, the Southern States produce over $100 billion in forest products. The region is the first-choice resource for an affordable supply of sustainable wood products with a variety of species, year-long harvesting and over 1,600 mills. Nashville, TN is positioned in the middle of America’s wood basket. The US South and Eastern US hardwood represent 42% of the North American lumber manufactured.
This strategic location guarantees that, one, the biggest and best in the industry will be exhibiting, and, two, everyone in the region who cares about forestry will be attending the event.
Whether you are looking to network as a business owner or just check out some cool equipment as an attendee, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better expo than the Forest Products Machinery and Equipment Expo.
4. - Paul Bunyan Show
*Spoiler Alert* Paul Bunyan will not be at the show… But lumber and logging enthusiasts have been attending the show annually since the first Paul Bunyan Show in 1957.
Located in Lore City (Cambridge), OH, the trade show is hosted by the Ohio Forestry Association. The show is frequented by east coast lumberjacks and manufacturers of sawmills, firewood processing equipment, logging accessories, and more.
Photo: ohioforest.org
In addition to all the live demos you can ask for, the entertainment at the Paul Bunyan Show itself is a draw for fans of timber sports.
From the International Lumberjack Competition, to chainsaw carving competitions, to a log loader competition, the Paul Bunyan Show has everything you need for a great weekend.
The next Paul Bunyan Show is from October 6 to 8, 2023 at the Guernsey County Fairgrounds in Lore City (Cambridge), OH.
3. - Oregon Logging Conference
The Oregon Logging Conference has a little more emphasis on forestry and logging than firewood processing, but as it is the largest equipment show in the Pacific Northwest, you are sure to find the equipment you are interested in.
Photo: oregonloggingconference.com
Unlike some of the other trade shows on this list, a big part of the Oregon Logging Conference’s mission is to influence and guide the next generation of forestry and logging professionals.
So, bring along the family and have your children learn about the firewood and logging industry.
Additionally, there are numerous seminars and speakers at the expo where the adults can continue to learn about their passion.
The Oregon Logging Conference is hosted yearly in Eugene, OR, and will next be in action from February 22 to 24, 2024.
2. - Northeastern Loggers’ Expo
Hosted by the Northeastern Loggers’ Association, it makes sense that the Northeastern Loggers’ Expo is the premier firewood expo in the northeast.
The trade show is hosted in Bangor, Maine on odd years and Essex Junction, Vermont on even years, so there’s no excuse for a Northeastern manufacturer not to be there.
The expo is consistently attended by 200-250 of the nation's most respected manufacturers and 7,000 attendees.
Photo: northernlogger.com
Important to note for exhibitors, these 7,000 attendees are not hobby loggers; the attendees are primarily active decision-makers in the industry.
The Northeastern Loggers’ Expo has inside and outside displays, with both live demos and static displays.
Northernlogger.com stated that 2023 exhibitors were made up of 42% loggers, 15% truckers, 15% firewood production, 13% sawmillers, and 8% foresters.
1. - NYS Woodsmen’s Field Days
Heavy equipment demos, a farmers market, live music, wine tasting, a 10k race, beard content, lumberjack competitions, skin cancer screenings, and even a non-denominational church service are all part of the NYS Woodsmens’ Field Days expo - plus more.
Yes, that’s right, this is a forestry and logging expo, not a state fair - though it would be easy to confuse them.
Photo: woodsmensfielddays.com
Don’t worry about getting caught up in the extra events - Woodsmen’s Field Days is still a firewood junky’s paradise.
The trade show is hosted annually in Boonville, NY, a small upstate NY town that comes alive when big-time exhibitors and thousands of attendees flock to see the biggest and best in the firewood industry.
This expo brings together the best entertainment, education, and action the industry has to offer.