Our piece, Spring Produce Show Lineup, focused on the New England Produce Council and its NEPC Produce & Floral Expo — but it also ran down the list of other major domestic produce shows, including this week’s United Fresh event.
We were, however, remiss in not mentioning our Canadian friends and Jane Proctor, who has contributed to the Pundit previously with pieces such as these:
Pundit’s Mailbag — Joint Response To Produce Traceability Cost Concerns
Pundit’s Mailbag — CPMA & PMA To Lead Industry Closer To Global Traceability
Pundit’s Mailbag — Joint Response To Produce Traceability Cost Concerns
Well, Jane sent a friendly reminder:
Great presentation at the United Produce Executive Course at Cornell — it was a terrific week with an outstanding roster of topics and presenters/profs.
I couldn’t help but notice that your article, “Spring Produce Show Lineup”, didn’t include CPMA’s 85th Annual Convention & Trade Show, so I wanted to drop you a quick note to remind you of our event which is considered a favourite amongst many in the industry.
— Jane Proctor
Vice President Policy & Issue Management
Canadian Produce Marketing Association
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
The truth is that the CPMA event has always been one of our personal favorites. We had just seen Jane when we were up on Cornell’s campus teaching at the United Fresh/Cornell Executive Development Program, so it should have popped to mind. Three strokes with a wet noodle to the Pundit for failing to mention such a wonderful event.
We have always enjoyed its intimacy. You attend CPMA one year and you come back the next feeling like you know almost everyone. We fondly remember sitting in the corner of some reception or hanging out late in the evening at some restaurant or bar and chatting with Wayne McKnight back in his pre-Wal-Mart days when he was with Sobey’s Co-Op Atlantic. What an innovative mind. As the events get larger, there are more contacts to see and so it gets harder to have that incredible quality time that the CPMA event offers.
And back in our salad days, the convention was held in places like St. John’s in January. Now it is a May event, so the weather is generally pleasing and, this year, it is in scenic Vancouver.
You can access the agenda here. And register right here.
We also received a note in the same vein from the International Sprout Growers Association:
I noticed in your most recent issue a list of upcoming shows. I was hoping you would be able to mention ours in your next issue. Thank you.
— Rich Wolfe
International Sprout Growers Association
Warwick, Rhode Island
Well, as a commodity-specific show, it didn’t really qualify for inclusion in that article on the broader regional and national events. However, the President of the ISGA is Bob Sanderson, President at Jonathan’s Sprouts, who has contributed to the Pundit many times including these pieces:
Pundit’s Mailbag — The Acceptance Of Risk
Pundit’s Mailbag — Sprout Lessons Echo Food Safety Dilemma
Pundit’s Mailbag — More On Manure
Pundit’s Mailbag — The Tyranny Of Economics And The Goals Of Fairtrade
Pundit’s Mailbag — Can Irradiation Follow The Path Of Pasteurization?
Pundit’s Mailbag — A Look At Organic Versus Conventional Yields
Pundit’s Mailbag — Irradiation, Pasteurization and Labeling
Pundit’s Mailbag — Pesticides And Cancer
Pundit’s Mailbag — Food Prices And Free Markets
Pundit’s Mailbag — Organics And Manure
Since Bob is so familiar to Pundit readers, we thought we should go ahead and mention the show.
Plus the program includes people such as Mansour Samadpour, Founder, Principal at IEH Laboratories & Consulting Group, who we profiled here.
Tim Fleming, Executive VP at Strube Celery and Vegetable Co. and formerly Chairman of United, is leading a tour of the Chicago market. In addition, Dick Spezzano is going to be giving a workshop on how to “Price for Profitability.”
We have mentioned Dick Spezzano many times. Dick, now President at Spezzano Consulting Service, Inc., was formerly Vice President of Produce at Vons and Chairman of the Board of PMA back in 1997. His workshop should be very enlightening.
You can see the program here. And register here.
The event is in Chicago just prior to the National Restaurant Association show. So there chance for a “two-fer”.
By the way, although we can’t mention every event on the Pundit, sister publication PerishableNews.com is set up to do so. If you have an event to promote, please make sure that ProducePR@PerishableNews.com is added to your press release list.
