Attending industry events is key to making personal connections and learning from education session experts — but you can do it in a day.
That’s the feedback the New England Produce Council received and then delivered, with its 22nd NEPC Produce, Floral and Foodservice Expo August 24-25 in Boston. The show was just 24 hours long.
Starting with a VIP reception at 5 p.m., followed by the general-attendee cocktail reception at 6 p.m. August 24, the bulk of the show packed itself into the following day until the trade show released the crowd by 4 p.m.
Also: All events — from the party, education panel breakfast, keynote speaker luncheon and expo — were at the Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport, which opened 11 months prior. It was all about convenience.
“Everyone likes everything under one roof,” said Laura Sullivan, executive director of the council.
Preregistration was a bit higher than last year, and all 140 booths were sold out, she said. The show attracts about 1,000 attendees.
While many attendees hail from the Northeast or East Coast, the show does draw people from across the U.S.
Luke Fountain of Atlas Produce & Distribution, based in Coachella, Calif., said he attends every year to share about his company’s Fresh Energy brand of medjool dates, table grapes and figs, and now a new snacking product line.
“We have a lot of business here in the Northeast,” Fountain said. “It’s good to be here and shake hands with those you’ve been emailing all year.”
The cocktail reception was filled to the brim at the hotel’s Sporting Club, where a live silver statue of a hockey player and a 4M ice sculpture contributed festive, athletic flair.
Related: NEPC Expo Reception Photos
The breakfast education panel session was about minimizing supply-chain challenges and filled every table, leaving late-comers standing at the back. Solutions bandied about were technology, digitization, automation and, of course — constant communication.
Convenience, snacking, functional nutrition and value-added were some product themes seen throughout the trade show. Examples of these trends include:
- Gutzy Organic: Single-serving, USDA-certified organic, gut-health, plant-based snack pouches.
- Sunnies Energy Bites: with Atlas Produce & Distribution’s medjool dates and seven other plant-based ingredients.
- Sour Cran Snacks: Made with organic cranberries from Decas Farms and Patience Fruit Co.
- So Good So You: Functional probiotic shots of cold-processed juice blends for immunity, detox, energy, beauty, digestion, sleep and metabolism.
- Tasteful Selections: Season and Savor microwave-ready trays of bite-sized potatoes in several flavors, including garlic-Parmesan, sea salt and balsamic vinegar mini sweet potatoes and garden herb, by RPE Inc.
What else is convenient?
Saying no to doing too much, and to things that don’t serve you and your goals and values. That was a key point to hockey star Blake Bolden, keynote speaker at the luncheon. She’s the first Black player to compete in the National Women’s Hockey League.
“You can’t be great if you feel low and are pouring out from an empty cup,” Bolden said.
Related news: NEPC Expo to feature new location, new schedule, hockey star
