Organisers of the Oxford Real Farming Conference have announced their decision to move the January 2022 event entirely online as fears of new Covid restrictions grow.
The event, taking place 5-7 January, will now be online only due to "rapidly increasing Covid cases and anticipated restrictions over the coming weeks".
The conference is the latest industry event to succumb to fresh concerns surrounding the new coronavirus variant, Omicron.
Agritechnica's organisers confirmed last week that their 2022 Hanover event will not go ahead, blaming a 'deteriorating' pandemic. The show has been pushed back to November 2023.
And machinery giant New Holland recently announced it will not attend next month's LAMMA event due to similar concerns.
Oxford Real Farming Conference's organisers said an in-person event of this scale at the beginning of January was 'no longer possible'.
"It is with heavy hearts that we have taken the decision to move ORFC 2022 entirely online," the conference's organisers said in a statement.
"Everyone who has booked a ticket to ORFC will receive details of how to access the online conference later today, when the full programme will also be published.
"Our programme of global sessions will continue as planned, so it’s going to be an incredible online line-up again.
"With the in-person conference now going online, we will be hosting 500 speakers across 135 sessions.
"Whilst we are incredibly disappointed not to be able to see you in person, we are really looking forward to hosting another great online ORFC."
