PLUSAGRI 2026 Agricultural Marketing Conference – Why Does Communicating with Farmers Require a New Approach Today?

How to reach a farmer? Where does he look for information? Who does he trust? What influences his decisions? These are the questions that have set the fundamental directions in agricultural marketing for years. However, the environment in which the customer journey takes place is changing: the channel mix and the ecosystem of brand touchpoints. As a result, it is increasingly difficult to speak of a single, linear communication path and a single dominant source of information.

Search engines, social media, and industry portals have for years been part of the information ecosystem used by farmers – much like brand communication, advisors, sales representatives, or their own experience. Today, this ecosystem is increasingly being entered by generative AI tools and recommendation systems, which not only provide information, but can also influence the way it is selected, interpreted, and translated into purchasing decisions. At the same time, algorithms are exerting an increasingly strong influence on content visibility, information distribution, and the messages the recipient will encounter at subsequent stages of their decision-making path.

For agro brands, this means a change in their approach to communication. It is no longer enough to answer the question, which channel to be present on. It becomes crucial to understand, what does a farmer's decision-making path look like, what are their informational intentions, which sources do they use, and which touchpoints genuinely influence their choices.

These very changes will be dedicated to PLUSAGRI 2026 Conference – Agricultural Marketing Communication Forum, which will take place November 18, 2026 in Warsaw under the slogan „Farmer in the Age of AI”.

Three years of changes that are hard to sum up in a single topic

Artificial intelligence is increasingly entering marketing and the daily circulation of information. It automates some processes, supports data analysis, audience segmentation, message personalization, content production, and campaign optimization. At the same time, new ways of searching for and selecting information are emerging.

However, that does not mean that agricultural marketing can today be reduced to the question of using AI. Technology is one of the elements of a broader change. For those responsible for marketing and communication, questions about the recipient, their needs, sources of information, trust, and the decision-making process remain crucial.

The PLUSAGRI 2026 Conference program was built precisely around these issues. Instead of a single answer to the question of what marketing will look like in the age of AI, the conference will present different perspectives: technological, research, marketing, and business. The conference will be opened by Jowita Michalska with the presentation „How AI and new technologies are changing the world?”, introducing participants to the broader context of technological transformation that is changing the way we work, communicate and make decisions today. Only against this background will the agro market perspective emerge and the question of what these changes mean for communication with the farmer. 

The farmer and AI – what is really changing?

One of the most important points of the conference will be the premiere of the survey results PLUSAGRI COMDEX 2026. The study is intended to provide data on the contemporary information and decision-making path of the Polish farmer, including knowledge and actual use of AI tools, information sources, methods of verifying them, and the level of trust in various sources of knowledge.

It will also be important to determine where in the decision-making process the boundary lies between one's own experience, human recommendation, and an algorithm-generated response. This is an important distinction: declared familiarity with a tool is one thing, and its actual use in specific situations is another.

„Artificial intelligence is increasingly entering everyday information circulation. From the perspective of the agricultural market, however, it is important to determine to what extent Polish farmers actually use AI tools, in which situations they consider them a reliable source of information, and when personal experience, expert knowledge, or an advisor's recommendation still play a greater role in the decision-making process.”
— Marcin Chrobot, co-founder and CEO of Martin & Jacob

Who decides what we see today?

A brand can prepare valuable content and precisely define its target group, but it does not have full control over whether, when and in what context the recipient will encounter the message. Search engines, social media, recommendation systems, and generative AI tools influence the visibility of content and the way information is selected and organized.

The question therefore arises as to the role of global technology platforms, data, and algorithms in shaping the flow of information. During the conference, Sylwia Czubkowska will address the topic of who actually controls communication today, given that algorithmic mechanisms increasingly co-decide what content viewers will see and to which they will pay attention.

Why can high reach be the biggest mistake of an agro campaign?

In agricultural marketing, reach alone does not yet indicate whether a campaign is reaching potential buyers. Polish farms vary in scale and production profile, investment potential, applied technologies, and the way purchasing decisions are made. Therefore, the question is becoming increasingly important not of how many farmers a brand has reached, but rather which potential buyers it has reached, with what message, and at what moment.

„In the agricultural industry, it is not just about maximizing reach, but above all about targeting relevance. An effective campaign precisely defines the recipient, their place in the decision-making path, and the context in which they should receive the message. That is why segmentation, data, the right choice of channels, and the timing of communication are crucial today. What matters is not how many farmers we reach, but how many the right buyers we reach with information that can genuinely influence their decision.”
— Jacek Kwiatkowski, CEO of Adagri Sp. z o.o., agricultural marketing expert

In your case study „Why a large reach can be the biggest mistake of an agro campaign” Jacek Kwiatkowski will show how to look at campaign effectiveness through the prism of reach quality and the business value of a contact. It is also a question of how to measure the effectiveness of marketing activities when reach alone does not answer the question of whether the communication actually supported the decision-making process.

Can AI take over a brand's relationship with a farmer?

This question is not meant to be predetermined at the PLUSAGRI 2026 Conference. In the Oxford debate „Can AI take over a brand's relationship with a farmer?” Participants will grapple with the boundary between communication automation and the role of the human, experience, and direct relationship.

In the agricultural sector, expert knowledge, experience, relationships with advisors, and familiarity with the realities of a specific farm remain of particular importance. At the same time, AI increases the scale and capabilities of information analysis. The confrontation of these perspectives is intended to show where technology can support the relationship and where its limitations arise.

Oxford debate: „Can AI take over the brand's relationship with the farmer?” will be led by Arkadiusz Wódkowski.

Can AI build a brand and trust?

In a world of information overload, not only the content itself matters, but also its source. A farmer may encounter a manufacturer's recommendation, another user's opinion, expert material, an advisor's tip, or an AI-generated response. Along with the growing use of artificial intelligence, the question therefore arises not only as to, how to use new technologies more effectively in marketing, but also how to preserve what builds brand value: strategy, credibility, and customer relationships. This topic will be addressed during PLUSAGRI 2026 Jacek Kotarbiński, who in his speech „Can AI build a brand and trust?” I will show how to use artificial intelligence in marketing without losing sight of a strategic approach, brand consistency, and audience relationships. 

Can AI truly understand a farmer?

AI can analyze huge amounts of information, but the effectiveness of such a solution also depends on the quality and context of the knowledge it works on. Agriculture has its own language, seasonality, specificity of production, problems, and decision-making mechanisms.

During PLUSAGRI 2026 technology panel the participants will therefore discuss whether and how technology can truly understand the farmer. The panel will be attended by Jacek Skowroński, Paweł Trojanowski and Aleksander Szlaga. Points of reference will include, among others,. FarmerPlanet Knowledge Taxonomy, organizing knowledge, content, research, problems, solutions, products and brands, and Agro Decision Genome – a model describing the factors influencing a farmer's decisions, such as price, risk, technology, brand, community, or investment readiness.

The conversation will show how to combine data, research, expert knowledge, community experiences, and artificial intelligence to better understand farmers' needs and decisions and to build more effective marketing communication in the agricultural sector.

„AI alone doesn't understand the farmer. For technology to generate accurate responses and truly support marketing communication, it needs the right data context. It must understand the specifics of agricultural language, farm characteristics, the farmer's problems and needs, their behavior, and the factors influencing decision-making processes. Only the combination of AI models with domain knowledge and behavioral context allows data to be translated into truly useful recommendations.”
— Jacek Skowroński, Management Board Member, Chief Technology Officer

Over 20 years of the agricultural marketing conference

PLUSAGRI 2026 is not an event created from scratch. It is the next stage in a history spanning over 20 years of meetings dedicated to agricultural marketing, communication, and market research.

First Agricultural Marketing Communication Conference took place on July 9, 2003, in Warsaw. It was organized by Martin & Jacob and the ABM Market Research Agency. Already during the first edition, discussions were held on the behavior of agricultural producers, market research, and advertising expenditures of companies in the agricultural sector. At that time, the results of the Agribus nationwide farm panel and data from the Agriculture Monitoring System project were presented, among others.

Subsequent conferences took place in the following years, and their themes changed along with the development of the market. In 2004, one of the main issues was the role of agricultural media and effective communication with agricultural producers. A year later, the discussion focused, among other things, on media planning, advertising expenditures, the positioning of agricultural brands, and research into the behavior and attitudes of farmers.

In 2008, during another edition, questions already arose regarding the growing role of the Internet in communication with farmers, the effectiveness of agricultural press, marketing research, and the use of market data in action planning. The event was held under the patronage of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The change in the way of communicating with the farmer became even more visible in 2014, when a conference was organized at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development „Internet Agriculture”. Her program covered, among other things, the profile of the farmer using the internet, online communication standards, the ROPO model, internet research, and ways to capture farmers' attention online.

During the pandemic, the topic of digital marketing was continued in an online format as part of Adagri Online Marathon. For five days, experts presented practical issues related to agricultural marketing and developing online channels.

In 2023, twenty years after the first conference, the series returned in an anniversary edition under the slogan „Sustainable agricultural marketing in a sustainable agricultural world”. The program included, among others, research on farmers' expectations regarding brands, e-commerce, media planning, big data, and data-driven marketing. The special guest was Prof. Andrzej Dragan with a presentation dedicated to artificial intelligence. Approximately 160 representatives of the agricultural sector participated in the event.

PLUSAGRI 2026 continues this direction, but is already responding to the next shift in the marketing environment. Today, the question is not solely whether a farmer uses the internet or social media. Artificial intelligence, algorithms, new ways of searching for information and verifying it, and the role of technology in building trust and making decisions are gaining increasing importance.

That is precisely why this year's conference is held under the motto „Farmer in the Age of AI”.

PLUSAGRI as a venue for confronting different perspectives

The PLUSAGRI 2026 Conference program has been built around the questions that are of particular concern today to those responsible for marketing and communication in the agricultural sector: 

• How does AI development change audience behavior?
• Who decides on the visibility of information?
• How to measure the actual effectiveness of a campaign?
• How to build a brand and trust? 
• Where is the line between automation and human-to-human interaction?

It is precisely the diversity of perspectives that is one of the most important assumptions of the event. Data needs the right interpretation. Technology needs context. Marketing needs audience insight. And all of these elements must ultimately answer the fundamental questions: how a farmer searches for information, whom they trust, and what influences their decisions.

The PLUSAGRI 2026 agricultural conference is not exclusively a conference about artificial intelligence. It is forum on transforming marketing communication in the agricultural sector and what the change in the information environment means for brands, strategies, and the way relationships are built with the audience. The answers are not obvious today – which is why it is worth discussing them from various perspectives.

Agricultural marketing conference PLUSAGRI 2026 – key information

November 18, 2026.
Warsaw Presidential Hotel, Warsaw
Marketing Communications Forum in Agriculture
Subject: „Farmer in the Age of AI”
Premiere: PLUSAGRI COMDEX 2026

The event is aimed at people responsible for marketing, communication, strategy, and business development in the agro sector. Participation is free of charge and available by personal invitation only. 

Do you want to know how communication with farmers is changing and what this means for agro brands? Discover the PLUSAGRI 2026 program and register your interest in receiving an invitation.

Explore the program and request an invitation →

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