Featured image: 2018 L&M Companies exhibits at PMA Fresh Summit
Judging by the exhibitor floor plan of this year’s PMA Fresh Summit in Anaheim, onions are a well-featured item in just about every sector of the trade show.
Out of the 1,159 exhibitors registered on Sept. 17 to be at the Oct. 18-19 expo, 105 are either onion companies, include onions in their manifests or are suppliers to the industry. We thought we’d save you some time and print some of the names and booth numbers and a link to the floor plan ahead of the show.
Exhibiting are Olathe Sweet Sweet Corn (John Harold and his Colorado Western Slope onions), Booth 2274; Basin Gold, Booth 3940; Bybee Produce, Booth 4850; C&M (Checchi & Magli) Transplanters, Booth 3600; Coastline Family Farms, Booth 3067; Colorado Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, Booth 2274 ; Columbia Basin Onion, Booth 995; Eagle Eye Produce, Booth 3351; Easterday Farms Produce, Booth 883; Green Giant Fresh, Booth 2537; Keystone Fruit Marketing, Booth 2993; L&M Cos., Booth 3963; Michael Cutler Co. – Oso Sweet Onions, Booth 3449; Owyhee Produce, Booth 2880; Peri & Sons, Booth 2442; Potandon Produce, Booths 1382 and 2537; ProSource, Booth 4683; RPE, Booth 4192; Sunset Onions, Booth 3944; Torrey Farms, Booth 4560; USA Onions/Idaho-E. Oregon Onions, Booth 3471; USDA, Booth 4625; Vidalia Onion Committee, Booth 3450; Volm Companies, Booth 3202; and Wada Farms, Booth 4167.
The link to onion and onion-inclusive booth listings is https://s15.a2zinc.net/Clients/pma_freshsummit/19/Public/eventmap.aspx?ID=441&shMode=E.
PMA Fresh Summit kicks off with an afternoon retail tour on Oct. 16, and each day is packed with things to do, people to see and places to go. Receptions and networking opportunities are plentiful as always, and attendees are encouraged to check out the Fresh Ideas Showcase in the Convention Hall B/C Lobby, where examples of “what’s new and innovative across the supply chain” will be displayed.
PMA’s Thursday, Oct. 17, educational session line-up includes Experience Extensions that address produce consumption, connections and careers; “what’s hot and what’s not” in science and technology, the “new normal” in global trade; food safety; and opportunities in Southeast Asia, The State of the Industry address will be given on Thursday by PMA CEO Cathy Burns.
Thursday afternoon will also include a “Forum for the Future – Solving Industry Issues One Pitch at a Time,” featuring Robert Herjavec, entrepreneur and leading Shark on ABC’s Shark Tank. The session will be moderated by Vonnie Estes, PMA’s VP of Technology, and will spotlight Herjavec’s “thoughts and insights for solving industry issues…” Four entrepreneurs will propose their solutions to Herjavec and a panel of judges as they each vie for $100,000 in investment value from SVG Ventures plus a spot on the award winning THRIVE VI Accelerator Program in Silicon Valley.
Friday, Oct. 18, treats attendees to a morning session entitled “Forum for The Future: Challenging Yourself to Victory” and featuring Earvin “Magic” Johnson and moderated by Dwight Ferguson of Naturipe Farms.
Magic will tell how he has met goals and overcome challenges both in his NBA basketball superstar career and in managing his HIV diagnosis, all leading to his success as an entrepreneur and “cultivator of renewed, under-served communities.”
The trade show runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Halls A-D, bringing attendees and exhibitors from across the produce and floral spectrum. The PMA website promises a “… diverse marketplace of more than 1,200 exhibitors, over 3,200 buyers and 22,000 attendees from 60-plus countries…” with “… endless opportunities for connections, collaborations, considerations and communications.” There are, of course, receptions and other great offerings throughout the afternoon and evening.
On Saturday morning the Center for Growing Talent presents this year’s Women’s Fresh Perspectives Leadership Breakfast and guest speaker Queen Latifah, who will look at building meaningful relationships and sharing career insights.
For a complete look at PMA Fresh Summit’s 2019 schedule of events and activities, go to https://www.pma.com/events/freshsummit/attendees/schedule.
