AIPH CONGRESS + INDUSTRY TOURS Convene the Global Horticulture Community and Open New Opportunities for Expo 2031

From the conference rooms of Bari to the nurseries of Puglia, Expo 2031 Minnesota USA joined growers, industry leaders and international Expo organizers to explore how horticulture can shape the future of cities, commerce, tourism and global collaboration.

BARI, ITALY / September 2026

The 78th Annual Congress of the International Association of Horticultural Producers brought the global horticulture community together in Bari, Italy, for a week that connected international Expo development with the realities of the industry that will ultimately bring those Expos to life.

Held September 13–17 in Italy’s Puglia region, the Congress convened growers, national horticultural associations, Expo organizers, researchers, Green City leaders and horticultural businesses from around the world. Its program combined the International Horticultural Expo Conference, the Horticultural Industry Conference and two days of professional visits to leading nurseries throughout Puglia.

For Expo 2031 Minnesota USA, the gathering represented something larger than a project update.

It was an opportunity to connect the United States’ first A1 International Horticultural Exposition directly with the global industry that grows the plants, develops the technologies, manages the supply chains and creates the landscapes that define modern horticulture.

From Global Expo to Global Industry

Expo 2031 CEO Wendy Meadley joined the Congress alongside the Expo 2031 leadership team and Official Partners including BRC Imagination Arts, MPS, SRF Consulting Group, Tixr, Trivandi and TPN to continue introducing the project to the international horticultural community.

The AIPH Expo Conference brought together organizers and stakeholders from upcoming horticultural Expos across multiple continents. AIPH describes these international exhibitions as platforms through which cities and countries can showcase the power of plants, strengthen international connections and establish lasting green legacies.

That mandate closely aligns with Expo 2031’s theme:

Human / Nature — Where Humanity and Horticulture Meet

But the conversations in Bari also reinforced an important principle for Expo 2031:

A successful horticultural Expo cannot simply exhibit horticulture. It must engage the horticulture industry itself.

That means growers.

Breeders and plant producers.

Landscape and Green City leaders.

Technology companies.

Researchers.

Garden centers and retailers.

Equipment and infrastructure providers.

National horticultural associations.

And the thousands of businesses that make up the global plant supply chain.

For Expo 2031, these organizations represent potential participants, suppliers, program partners, demonstration partners and long-term collaborators.

Welcoming AmericanHort's New President & CEO

One particularly important opportunity was connecting with Lionel van der Walt, President & CEO of AmericanHort.

AmericanHort announced van der Walt's appointment in May 2026, with his tenure beginning June 2. He brings more than 20 years of executive leadership experience spanning international associations, technology and commercial organizations. AmericanHort cited his global perspective and collaborative leadership approach as important assets as the organization enters its next chapter.

His participation in the international horticultural community comes at an especially important moment for Expo 2031.

As the national association representing businesses across the U.S. green industry, AmericanHort has the potential to help connect Expo 2031 with growers, garden retailers, landscape companies, plant breeders, suppliers, manufacturers and other organizations across American horticulture.

For Expo 2031, that relationship is about more than representation.

It is an opportunity to create a bridge:

GLOBAL HORTICULTURE → EXPO 2031 → U.S. MARKET

and

U.S. HORTICULTURE → EXPO 2031 → GLOBAL MARKET

Expo 2031 can become a place where American companies encounter international markets and ideas — while international growers and horticultural organizations gain a new platform for engaging the United States.

Seeing the Industry Behind the Expo

The Congress did not end in the conference hall.

On September 16 and 17, delegates traveled throughout Puglia for professional visits to leading nursery businesses, gaining first-hand exposure to production systems, plant selection, sustainability practices, technology and business models within one of Europe's significant horticultural regions.

Those visits were particularly relevant to the development of Expo 2031.

International horticultural exhibitions require extraordinary plant production and supply-chain coordination. Trees, shrubs, perennials, annuals and specialty crops must often be planned years in advance.

Behind every finished garden is an ecosystem of growers, breeders, logistics providers, designers, researchers and suppliers.

Walking through production nurseries transforms an Expo conversation from an architectural plan into a horticultural reality.

What plants will be required?

Where will they be grown?

How far in advance must production begin?

Which varieties can perform in Minnesota's climate?

How can international plant material be represented while meeting U.S. biosecurity and regulatory requirements?

What new growing technologies can be demonstrated?

And how can the investment required for 2031 strengthen the American horticulture industry long after the Expo closes?

Those are increasingly central questions for Expo 2031.

An Opportunity to Build a U.S. Horticulture Platform

Expo 2031 is developing a horticultural framework that will include international gardens, climate-zone landscapes, specialty gardens, horticultural competitions, demonstration programs and a major USA Pavilion horticultural experience.

The Expo's five climate environments including: Arid, Tropical, Temperate, Continental and North Star provide a natural framework for international participation.

They can also become a framework for industry collaboration.

Growers and plant organizations from different regions of the world can help shape living collections, demonstration landscapes, production partnerships and educational programming relevant to their own horticultural systems.

For American businesses, the same platform can provide opportunities for product demonstration, research, workforce development, international relationships and exposure to millions of potential visitors.

The result could be one of the most significant public-facing horticulture platforms ever created in the United States.

Horticulture as Infrastructure for the Future

The AIPH Congress also broadened the conversation beyond plant production.

The 2026 Horticultural Industry Conference focused on themes including greener and more liveable cities, productivity, sustainable production and intelligent use of technology in horticulture.

These issues are deeply connected to Expo 2031's long-term mission.

Plants are increasingly part of the infrastructure through which societies address heat, water, biodiversity, food systems, public health, urban development and quality of life.

That creates a larger role for horticulture and a larger opportunity for an international horticultural Expo.

Expo 2031 is being designed as a place where visitors can see those possibilities at full scale.

Not only as ideas.

As living systems.

Bringing the Global Horticulture Community to Minnesota

The relationships being built through AIPH are laying the groundwork for the international participation that will ultimately define Expo 2031.

Between now and 2031, that work will increasingly connect global horticultural organizations with their counterparts across the United States.

AmericanHort can be an important part of that bridge.

So can growers, state nursery and landscape associations, public gardens, universities, research organizations and companies across the American green industry.

Together, these organizations can help answer one of the most important questions facing Expo 2031:

What should the world discover about American horticulture when it arrives in Minnesota?

And equally important:

What should America's horticulture industry discover about the world?

The conversations that began in Bari are helping build that answer.

From Bari to Minnesota

The 78th AIPH Annual Congress demonstrated the unique convening power of horticulture.

A conversation beginning with an Expo can quickly become a conversation about cities, food, technology, tourism, trade, sustainability, research and the landscapes in which people live.

That is precisely the opportunity ahead for Expo 2031 Minnesota USA.

Human / Nature, Where Humanity and Horticulture Meet.

May–October 2031 | Minnesota, USA

Bring the World to America and America to the World.