The U.S. Apple Association is changing its annual Crop Outlook and Marketing Conference into a virtual event to comply with regulations in Chicago limiting the amount of people who can congregate.
The digital apple conference will be Aug. 20-21.
The governor of Illinois and mayor of Chicago on May 5 released five-phase reopening plans. In both of those documents, according to a U.S. Apple news release, gatherings of more than 50 people are allowed only when Phase 5 conditions are in place, which begins after a COVID-19 vaccine or “highly effective” treatment is widely available.
“In other words, even if people feel comfortable traveling to Chicago in August, a conference of Outlook’s size would be prohibited under the Illinois/Chicago plans,” according to a statement from the association. “In addition to these restrictions, we also feel it is important to avoid jeopardizing the health and safety of our attendees and their families.”
U.S. Apple’s goal with a digital event is to broaden the conference to reach a larger audience, according to the release.
“We already have great speakers lined up and have been studying best practices of other organizations that have successfully executed virtual events,” according to the release.
The association plans to e-mail registration information to attendees in the first week in June.
To see how the pandemic has changed conference plans for other associations on The Packer’s COVID-19 webpage.
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