Americafruit: Can you explain the theme of this year’s PMA Fresh Summit in Anaheim, California, on 26-28 October? Do you have an overarching goal in putting on the event?
Bryan Silbermann: The three aims of the PMA are to educate, inform and connect, and we view our role as having one foot in the present and one foot in the future. Things are becoming so chaotic and changing so fast that we need to look at where we will be ten years from now and how companies can prepare for that.
PMA Fresh Summit provides the opportunity to bring together the entire fresh produce supply chain to add new connections to existing ones and to make people think deeply about how they need to change.
What message do you aim to put across in this year’s State of the Industry address?
BS: My State of the Industry address will focus on game-changing ideas and what we’ll have to do to remain relevant to consumers.
However, this year my address will not just be a ‘presentation by Bryan’. It will be a forward-looking piece that highlights the key leaders and prognosticators. It reflects the way in which PMA sees itself. We are a thought leader, but we also rely on other partners to see how we will be in ten years’ time.
What would you say is the state of the fresh produce industry in North America at the moment, especially in relation to imported fruit and vegetables?
BS: There’s no single produce industry in North America and the different segments are all having different times. Overall, though, the industry is doing OK.
Consumption of fruit and vegetables is not where it should be, however. There has been a slight decline in the last decade. Consumers are worried about food-safety scares too, so we have our work cut out. A lot also has to do with enhancing the flavour of produce and competing with the snack food industry.
Imports have generally been in a good position. Banana imports have had a lot of challenges while avocados have done very well and consumption has grown again. Table grapes continue to do well and berries too. The bright star in the berry category are blueberries, whose consumption has really gone through the roof.
Can you give us an overview of the key topics which will be covered in the education sessions during the event?
BS: We’ve focused the show in a very compact way this year, so it’s easy for everyone to digest. All of the education sessions and workshops will take place on Friday 26 October, while the trade show will run on Saturday and Sunday for networking and meetings. The 18 educational sessions will cover food safety, regulations, digital marketing, changing consumer demands and global trends, among others.
Which awards ceremonies and product showcases will be organised this year?
BS: The PMA Impact Packaging Awards will take place as usual, while the PMA Floral Marketer of the Year Award will now take place on the Saturday evening during the Floral Networking Reception. Plus, we have a brand new award: the Robert Carey Leadership Award.
Bob was my predecessor at pma and he retired in 1996. Basically, it’s a leadership award for services to the industry and it will be given out during the opening brunch session on the Friday.
In conjunction with our annual New Products Showcase we have also added a Just 4 Kids product showcase. This will take place on the show floor on Sunday and will see children tasting the products as a kind of sensory panel.
What do you expect will be the stand-out moments of this year’s show?
BS: The stand-out moments will be on Friday, Saturday and Sunday! Like the Olympics, we believe PMA Fresh Summit has something for everyone. The excitement around the trade show is always the most palpable though. There are seven hours each day in which to experience the show and it’s adrenaline-inducing! The cerebral high, meanwhile, will be on Friday during the education sessions.
The show has been cut to three days. What benefits do you expect to offer by removing Monday morning?
BS: We’ve segmented the three days and made it more simplified. Day one is for education and day two and three are for the trade show. By removing Monday, the number of hours for the trade show has only gone down to 14 hours from 15.5 hours, and the last hour of Monday was always quiet anyway.
The change in the schedule will focus people’s attention and reduce costs for everyone. I’ll be very surprised if the vast majority of people don’t see a much greater return on their investment as a result.
Is attendance set to surpass last year’s expo in Atlanta and the last Anaheim show in 2009?
BS: We are expecting more than 18,000 attendees from around 60 countries in 2012. We typically draw our largest attendance on the West Coast and we’re anticipating this year to be record-breaking. The last West Coast numbers were 19,070.
There are a lot of international contingents coming this year. Tesco’s worldwide group is attending, as well as its global sourcing group, including suppliers and executives. Tesco will organise a meeting at the summit, plus Costco and Walmart will do the same. There is a whole group of Asda people coming too.
We always get a lot of Australians and New Zealanders because of our affiliate association there. There will also be a contingent of 70 people from Brazil this year and groups from Asia. Mexico always has a big delegation too. In additional, well over 50 people are coming from South Africa, which is the biggest number ever. The exhibition will reflect the growing globalisation of the produce industry.
Will the exhibition space be larger too? How many new exhibitors are confirmed for this year?
BS: Our 247,000ft2 show floor is larger than in Atlanta and at the last West Coast show, and will feature over 1,000 exhibiting companies. There are nearly 100 more first-time exhibitors than we’ve had in the past two years, but not as many as we had during the last West Coast show. We’re seeing an increase in the number of exhibition booths on the show floor and this is due to the fact that many exhibitors are returning year after year.
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