"With 2,445 exhibitors and around 160,000 visitors, including 38,000 international visitors, EuroTier 2012 has reached new record levels," announced Dr Reinhard Grandke, Chief Executive Officer of the organizer DLG (Deutsche Landwirtschafts-Gesellschaft – German Agricultural Society), speaking to the press in Hanover at the close of EuroTier on 16 November 2012. With this result, EuroTier has impressively demonstrated its great pulling power for animal husbandry farmers and experts from all over the world and further consolidated its leading position as the world’s top event for professional animal husbandry. BioEnergy Decentral at EuroTier has become firmly established as the world forum for decentralized energy supply.

The number of exhibitors has increased by 25 per cent compared with 2010. Altogether 2,445 direct exhibitors and 41 additionally represented firms from a total of 51 countries presented their goods and services and their innovations. Around half of the exhibitors (1,151) came from outside Germany, representing a 40 per cent increase over 2010. This underpins EuroTier's unique position as the world's largest exhibition in this field.

EuroTier is the platform for launching new machines, installations and farm inputs on the international markets. The innovations in the areas of animal housing construction, machinery and installations for feeding and husbandry, electronics, instrumentation and control engineering, as well as data management shown here generate new impulses for effectiveness, efficiency, precision and animal welfare.

With around 160,000 visitors from over 100 countries, EuroTier has achieved a new record level. These figures represent an increase of around ten percent by comparison with 2010. EuroTier is the globally most important information forum for professional animal husbandry. The farmers, dealers and investors are making their farms and businesses fit for the future with modern technology and signposting strategies. This underscores the importance of agriculture as a key sector of the 21st century.

EuroTier is more international than ever before. Around 38,000 farmers, investors and expert visitors came to the Exhibition Grounds in Hanover to gather information. This corresponds to an increase of over 50 per cent by comparison with the previous maximum level. The largest contingents of international visitors came from the Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, France, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom. Nearly 3,000 investors and persons in charge of large-scale farms from Eastern Europe came to Hanover to see what is available on the market. The high numbers of visitors from the Near, Middle and Far East as well as from Central and South America also deserve mention. Over 7,000 visitors from these regions were registered. Visitor numbers from Germany remained constant at around 122,000.

The cattle sector at EuroTier is unique worldwide with its presentations of genetic resources and innovative installations and equipment. These form the basis for the strategies that beef and dairy farmers are adopting to prepare for the phasing out of the milk quota in 2015.

The solutions presented in the pig sector reflected the demands made of future keeping conditions. The motors driving them are the pressures to reduce costs and increase productivity, as well as alignment with increasing legal requirements and demands made by society.

The World Poultry Show at EuroTier completely satisfied its goal of being the global forum for the poultry sector. Breeders, producers and processors from all over the world used the comprehensive and highly specialised programme to develop the good prospects in the markets.

A further stand-alone feature of EuroTier is the unique programme addressing feed and animal health. It is only at EuroTier that the supply side in these segments meets the demand side made up of the farmers of all the key productive animal species.

The changing requirements made by society have a substantial influence on the development strategies of the livestock farmers. The Animal Welfare Info Centre at EuroTier offered a platform for discussing the different standpoints of various groups in society regarding modern livestock farming. Visitors to EuroTier made excellent use of this information forum.

The Technical Programme at EuroTier 2012 was very well attended by the visitors. The international events for the dairy and pig farmers and the International Poultry Day immediately preceding EuroTier have become established highlights for practical farmers and related specialists from all over Europe. They attracted around 1,300 international experts. The conferences and forum events and the congress of the Federal Association of Practising Veterinarians (Bundesverband Praktizierender Tierärzte; bpt) held overlapping with EuroTier also provided excellent opportunities for exchanging opinions and experience.

The Young Farmers Day on Thursday was a great success. Over 5,000 young farmers and students from Germany and abroad attended the various events offered at EuroTier. One highlight of EuroTier 2012 was once again the Young Farmers Party with around 2,500 young guests.

BioEnergy Decentral reported a constant number of around 42,000 visitors, despite the current market situation in Germany. The share of international visitors increased by twelve percent compared with 2010, which is attributable above all to the technology leadership in this industry. Accordingly, it was possible to expand BioEnergy Decentral as the global forum for decentralised energy supply.

The partnership with VDMA Power Systems and the Association of Local Utilities (VKU) has proved fruitful and contributed substantially to the success of BioEnergy Decentral. 650 exhibitors presented solutions for the entire value chain of decentralised energy supply.

The programme of BioEnergy Decentral was complemented by a comprehensive technical programme that was designed and implemented by DLG in partnership with Bauförderung Landwirtschaft - BFL (an organization devoted to promoting agricultural building construction and optimszing livestock management conditions), the publisher Energie & Management and further partners.

The next EuroTier including BioEnergy Decentral will be held in Hanover from 11 to 14 November 2014.