The Fresh Produce Association of the Americas is starting something big in 2023.
The FPAA has set Nov. 2-4, 2023, as the date for its SouthWest International Produce Expo in Tucson, Ariz.
The event will be FPAA’s first expo oriented toward buyers, says Lance Jungmeyer, president of FPAA. The event is well positioned with ample time between other existing industry trade shows, he noted.
“There is a lot of excitement in the association right now about our [2023] trade show,” Jungmeyer said. The event will invite wholesale and retail buyers to the venue and give them opportunities to connect with FPAA members, he added.
FPAA is adjusting its strategic direction in other ways as well, Jungmeyer said.
The group, with more than 50 distributor members and about that number of associate members, is looking to expand its presence in other Southwest border states, he said.
A recent review of its operations indicated members were urging FPAA to do more advocacy work in all border states with Mexico, Jungmeyer said.
For example, FPAA lent its voice in opposition to stepped-up inspections of Mexican commercial trucks entering Texas, put in place briefly by Texas Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in April 2022. The inspections caused big delays in produce crossings and hurt U.S. produce distributors.
Jungmeyer said many produce distributors have facilities in Nogales and other U.S. border cities, such as McAllen, Texas, and Otay Mesa, Calif., and FPAA members would like the association to advocate for their interests in all border states.
For example, Jungmeyer said FPAA is already advocating that all points of entry on the Southwest border have closed-off and refrigerated inspection areas.
The association has a five-year plan to expand its work in other border states, he said, and more details about those plans will be released later.
With ambitions to expand its influence, FPAA has a good relationship and shared interests with the Texas International Produce Association, Jungmeyer said. “There is a strong element of support there,” he said.
