CPMA readies for big Toronto show
From a hockey game in the former Maple Leaf Gardens to a Barenaked Ladies concert, the Canadian Produce Marketing Association is planning a really big show for its 92nd annual convention May 9-11 in Toronto.
More than 4,000 attendees are expected from all over the world, and more than 1,300 companies will take part in the two-day trade show, said president Ron Lemaire, making networking opportunities priceless.
“We are getting strong pickup and we had record numbers registering with the early bird deadline,” said Lemaire.
He said this year’s convention, with its We are Produce theme, is being held nearly a month later than usual simply because of the number of hotel rooms required and the amount of space needed at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
“The only downside is that some grower-shippers are having to balance being in the fields and being part of the biggest show in the country,” he said.
Instead of expanding the show, he said CPMA is bringing in more buyers from Canada and around the world.
“The key is quality contacts as opposed to volume,” he said.
Before the opening reception on Tuesday, May 9, everyone’s invited to the Half Your Plate hockey game at the Mattamy Athletic Centre to watch teams from CPMA and the Ontario Produce Marketing Association battle it out in the former rafters of Maple Leaf Gardens, above Loblaws’ flagship store.
Lemaire said players on both sides will be joined by rising stars from the national women’s hockey team, and proceeds generated from sponsorship will go to the Half Your Plate program and the Ladies First Hockey Foundation.
“It can get a little competitive,” he warns.
Following the game, attendees will gather at the Hockey Hall of Fame, across the street from Union Station, for the convention’s opening reception.
On Wednesday afternoon at 5 p.m., CPMA is hosting an international export-ready reception in its booth where any international partners who export to Canada can meet potential customers, ambassadors and trade attachés.
“Being export-ready isn’t just about regulations and food safety,” Lemaire said. “It’s about knowing the Canadian customer, meeting the buyers and building the relationships.
“If you try to ship product to a country without developing that face-to-face relationship, you will never be successful in the long run,” he said.
Thursday’s awards lunch will name CPMA’s Lifetime Achievement award winner and feature a CPMA update. Chef Michael Smith, ambassador for the Half Your Plate program, will also address delegates.
Along with live music, Thursday’s final banquet also celebrates The Packer’s Canadian Produce Person of the Year and introduces CPMA’s 2017-18 chair, Rick Alcocer of Oviedo, Fla.-based Duda Farm Fresh Foods.
Lemaire said seating is limited for the final event and tables are filling up quickly. To enter, attendees need a full delegate pass or a banquet ticket.
