GOPEX session to focus on policy priorities for organic produce

Editor’s note — The Packer’s Global Organic Produce Expo has two parts this year: GOPEX Home, an online experience focused on education and perspective from industry leaders, and GOPEX Go, an in-person, COVID-conscious event scheduled for August. Register here.

The Organic Trade Association’s Megan DeBates and Grimmway’s Ben Diesl will discuss policy issues relevant to produce Jan. 28 at the Global Organic Produce Expo.

DeBates, the vice president of legislative affairs for OTA, will present the priority items for produce that OTA included in its memo to the transition team of incoming president Joe Biden. Diesl, the vice president of quality assurance for Grimmway, which markets many organic vegetables under its Cal-Organic label, will speak about the importance of those policy priorities from a supplier perspective.

Diesl is also the chair of the OTA’s new produce council, which will also be discussed during the session. The OTA has councils for numerous segments of agriculture, and those councils help direct where OTA focuses its advocacy efforts. The session will also include information on how produce industry members can get involved in the new council.

The session is scheduled for 3:15 p.m. CST on Jan. 28, and immediately following will be a networking session during which attendees can continue the conversation regarding which policies will be most important for their operations in the coming years.