MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

The Uruguayan farm show that has hosted Falklands delegations opens its 2026 edition

The Falklands took part with their own delegation and stand for the first time in 2015

The Rural Association of Uruguay presented on Monday the 121st edition of Expo Prado, the country's largest livestock, agro-industrial and commercial show, to be held from September 11 to 20 at the Prado showground in Montevideo. The event included the inauguration of the last of the venue's three historic sheds, rebuilt since 2023.

The structures, designed by architect Cayetano Buigas y Monravá, are listed as a National Historic Monument, so the works had to respect the original designs, according to Carlos Pascual, one of those responsible for the project. Investment was estimated at 1.5 million dollars per shed.

“The productive evolution of Uruguay passed through here,” said the association's president, Rafael Ferber, who thanked the Montevideo city government, which owns the site, for its support. He argued the grounds should be used year-round and not only during the show's ten days. Mayor Mario Bergara noted that 60% of the department's territory is rural and that 40% of the fruit and vegetables Uruguayans consume comes from that area.

The association's exhibitions director, Rodrigo Granja, said the livestock section will bring together more than 2,000 animals of 40 breeds, including beef and dairy cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, horses, rabbits, poultry and dogs. The agro-industrial and commercial section will feature more than 650 exhibitors and some 2,500 brands, alongside national, departmental and diplomatic representation.

That international dimension has made the fair a recurring stage for a diplomatic dispute. The Falklands took part with their own delegation and stand for the first time in 2015, within the British embassy pavilion, and have returned in later editions. In 2024 the island delegation spent two weeks in the country, visiting farms and INIA research centres and attending the opening of the British pavilion alongside Ambassador Malcolm Green and the then Uruguayan foreign minister, Omar Paganini.

The presence has drawn Argentine protests in most years. In 2017 the then Uruguayan foreign minister, Rodolfo Nin Novoa, asked for the reference to the Islands to be removed from the British stand. In 2022 Argentina's foreign ministry issued a formal statement and made representations to the Uruguayan government and to the association itself to discourage island participation. In 2025 the British ambassador in Montevideo, Fayee O'Connor, informed her Argentine counterpart, Alberto Iribarne, as a courtesy ahead of the show.

Argentina maintains a sovereignty claim over the archipelago, administered by the United Kingdom since 1833; in the 2013 referendum, residents voted overwhelmingly to retain their status as a British overseas territory. Island participation in this year's edition has not been confirmed.