Winter has officially settled in the Northeast, bringing with it snow and Pennsylvania’s Keystone Farm Show.

Hosted annually at the York County Fairgrounds in York, PA, the event is in its 28th year. It is one of the first major events in the winter agricultural trade show circuit and draws attendees from across Pennsylvania and other areas up and down the East Coast.

Leading the game: Keystone Farm Show continues to grow

The team with Ag-Industrial, a PA-based dealership for New Holland, visits with an attendee. Photos by Andy Haman

The show’s management was even able to greet a bus tour of attendees from Ontario, Canada, this year, illustrating the expansiveness of the show’s audience – all a purely occupational farmer profile across the board. You won’t find “tire kickers” at this event. This show has the full-time farmer in its sights.

A representative with first-time exhibitor Mainero discusses their custom corn heads with attendees. The corn header is row independent, meaning farmers can harvest with any row spacing, in any direction.

That approach is intentional. Lee Trade Shows is specific about promotion and choosing who to tell Keystone’s story. “We don’t necessarily need everyone out there to know about the show,” said Keystone Farm Show’s Sales Manager Bruce Button. “We need to reach farmers – the guys who are out there in the field or in the milking parlor and who need this equipment. The ones who need these products and services – the serious buyers.”

A representative with Neptune’s Harvest chats with attendees about Neptune’s unique line of organic fertilizers and application tools.

Talking about the show’s focus, Button continued, “A lot of other farm shows do an excellent job of getting people immersed in and excited about farming, but we’re focused on the business component of farming.”

A representative with Rodman Drill demonstrated their line of abrasive heads, drill bits and other hand tool attachments throughout the show.

It’s something the show does well, drawing more than 400 exhibitors – a “who’s who” of equipment manufacturers and dealers, product suppliers and service providers from across the industry. The exhibitor list added 51 first-time entrants to the 2025 show, many of them like Riehl Way Ag, an agricultural drone company, and Mechnician, a software provider providing equipment owners the ability to self-calibrate and repair – both new to the trade show circuit.

Trifecta Solar offers a variety of solar installation and maintenance services for residential, commercial and agricultural applications.

Vendors and attendees alike checked in throughout the show on social media: “It has been a great first show for us at the Keystone Farm Show. Not just for us, but our partners Dose Manufacturing and Conrad Ag Services LLC too!” first-time exhibitor Mainero USA posted via Facebook.

As a dealer, Esh Equipment represented Hummerbee Rough Terrain Equipment – compact articulated loaders and forklifts.

The show, a Tuesday through Thursday event, saw excellent turnout. Attendees were undeterred by the wintery mixes of Monday and the cold weather. Though still too soon to have precise ticket tabulation or to note how 2025’s show compares to years prior, Trade Show Manager Ken Maring noted his satisfaction with the attendance Wednesday.

Attendees survey Appleton Steel’s display of their stationary and mobile-unit hoof trimming chutes.

“The second day is always one of the busiest days, but we had great crowds today. Excellent crowds,” he said.

First-time exhibitor Farm Sip Supreme shows attendees their line of detachable drink and hand tool holders – and more – for equipment cabs and other farm applications.

The show is not without educational programming and resources. Keystone Farm Show partners annually with Penn State Cooperative Extension and other entities to provide sessions in which farmers and producers can procure crop and pesticide credits. This year, sessions were added when PA Corn Growers Association shared Wednesday afternoon.

The team from University of Delaware’s Center for Experimental & Applied Economics were on hand to discuss risk mitigation for livestock producers.

The Center for Dairy Excellence offered workshop time throughout the show, offering to help farmers navigate paperwork and policy surrounding the growing threat of HPAI. The Center also shared free personal protective equipment and wash kits.

Kencove Farm Fence Supplies were on hand to discuss top-of-the-line fencing solutions for a variety of setups: high tensile, woven wire, electric netting and more.

The process never stops, as Keystone Farm Show’s management team pivots toward next week’s sister show in the Shenandoah Valley area of Virginia, but all are abuzz with ideas for next year as the Keystone Farm Show continues to grow and evolve at the forefront of agriculture.

To learn more, visit KeystoneFarmShow.com and VirginiaFarmShow.com.

by Andy Haman