Packaging Galore
Pack Expo, one of the largest trade shows in North America, will take place in Las Vegas Next month, and its exhibits and conference programming have plenty to offer for dairy and food companies.David Acheson, Assistant Commissioner of Food Protection at FDA, will be a keynote speaker at the Conference at Pack Expo, running October 15-17, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Acheson will deliver the conference’s closing KEYNOTE address on Wednesday, Oct. 17 at 10:10 a.m.
The three-day Conference at Pack Expo program will be held in conjunction with Pack Expo Las Vegas 2007. Both events are sponsored and produced by PMMI.
In his presentation titled “Assuring Safety in the Global Food Market: Our Shared Responsibilities,” Dr. Acheson will highlight the challenges the FDA faces in ensuring that the U.S.’s food supply continues to be among the safest in the world. These include increases in the volume and complexity of imported goods, growing international threats such as terrorism and emerging foodborne diseases and the significant increase during the past decade in consumption of produce, particularly ready-to-eat products.
On May 1 Acheson assumed the position of FDA Assistant Commissioner for Food Protection to provide advice and counsel to the Commissioner on strategic and substantive food safety and food defense matters.
“We are honored to have someone of Dr. Acheson’s caliber participate in the Conference at Pack Expo program,” says Ben Miyares, vice president, Industry Relations for PMMI. “Food safety has been a priority for industry and government, especially in recent years. With today’s global supply chains and increased automation in the manufacturing process, strict controls in the processing, packaging, transport and handling of a product are essential to ensure safety.”
The agenda for the upcoming Conference at Pack Expo, has a comprehensive education program that will help packaging professionals understand and respond to strategic business issues. Conference “tracks” will include Brand Protection, Converting, Cost Savings, E-Machinery, Material Advances, Processing, Safety, Sustainability, Track & Trace and Upgrading Operations.
Within the conference tracks, attendees can choose specific presentations that cover a broad range of issues, including sustainability enhancement, anti-counterfeiting, Six Sigma, lean changeover, traceability, RFID technology and much more.
To help select sessions most suited to individual business goals, attendees can use My Pack Expo ™ Registration for the keynote presentations and the entire Conference at Pack Expo program is currently available at www.packexpo.com. You can also contact PMMI’s Show Department at 703/243-8555; fax: 703/243-8556; or e-mailexpo@pmmi.org.
Getting equipped for food
Once again this year Pack Expo is co-located with Process Expo, which is organized by the Food Processing Suppliers Assn.Close to 400 Process Expo exhibitors will demonstrate state-of-the-art equipment in the fruit and vegetable, beverage, food safety and sanitation, confectionery, bakery, prepared foods, pharmaceutical, can making, meat, dairy and snack food industries. Visitors are expected to kick the tires and make purchasing decisions on the latest offerings in food processing equipment, air and liquid handling, and engineering/architectural design services, cooling/freezing, ingredients and instrumentation/controls.
“Our exhibitors are really responding and are excited about utilizing Process Expo to introduce new products and services, ” said Steven Schlegel, pres./CEO of FPSA.
Pack Expo, Process Expo and CPP Expo will occupy over 900,000 net square feet of exhibit space, encompassing the Central and South Halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Schlegel said he expects more than 21,000 visitors searching for solutions to their processing and packaging needs.
This year, Process Expo features a variety of specialty areas on the show floor:
3-A Sanitary Standards, Inc. is holding a workshop on Tuesday, October 16, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. in conjunction with Process Expo. The workshop will cover topics such as material specifications, fabrication/design criteria for product contact surfaces, Reference documents, installation, 3-A symbol, third party verification program, and benefits of 3-A symbol for equipment users. Cost for the session is $75.
Show attendees can also participate in the Conference at Pack Expo, which features a brand new Processing track this year. Other sessions include the International Society of Beverage Technologists Seminar. Stop by the back of the Upper South Hall to see the Inter-Collegiate Dairy Sensory Evaluation Contest. Beverage industry attendees should visit the co-located conference and exhibits by the International Bottled Water Association. Food safety is a key topic this year.
Also co-located, the International Bottled Water Association’s (IBWA) 2007 Convention and Tabletop Trade Show provides educational seminars on technologies, processes, marketing/sales techniques and industry trends. IBWA will take place at the Las Vegas Hilton, which is directly connected to the Las Vegas Convention Center.
One of the keynote speakers at the conference is Cal Dooley, pres./CEO of the Grocery Manufacturers/ Food Products Association.
Dooley will be the conference’s opening session keynote speaker on Monday, October 15 at 10 a.m. with a presentation entitled “Consumer Confidence: A Shared Objective of the Consumer Packaged Goods Industry and Policymakers.”
To register, for Process Expo and special programs visit www.myprocessexpo.com and click on Conferences
