By Amanda Brodhagen, Farms.com
In five years from now, Chatham-Kent County will host the 2018 International Plowing Match (IPM).
The county won its bid to showcase the five-day event at the Ontario Plowmen’s Association convention held in Stratford, Ont., on Saturday.
Chatham-Kent previously hosted the IPM in 1979 and 1919.
President of the Chatham-Kent Plowmen’s Association says the bid was successful thanks area farmers who agreed to donate their land for the event. Over 1,000 acres of farmland have been secured for the match in the Pain Court area.
In 2013, the municipality had unofficially pledged $100,000 over the next five-years to support the event. The IPM is an economic driver for host counties, bolstering local tourism attracting anywhere from 60,000 to 90,000 visitors annually.
The local plowmen’s association is now tasked with forming an executive committee to plan the event and recruit at least 1,500 volunteers that will be needed to put on the show.
Locations for the IPM have been decided for the next few years. This year it will be held in Simcoe County, followed by Wellington County in 2016 and Huron County in 2017.