“Unlike a lot of dairies, Hood does non-formula pricing for a lot of its products. So when we get price increases, it squeezes margins. We take a hit for a while. For value-added products, it’s more difficult.”

More than 2,000 food manufacturers, processors, restaurant executives and retailers gathered in March at the Washington, D.C., Convention Center for the 7th Annual Food Safety Summit and Expo. Highlights of the event included a keynote speech by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns, who pledged an additional $7 million to help protect the nation’s food supply. Attendance was up by 25 percent over 2004 with leading food companies such as Kraft, ConAgra and Land O’Lakes among the firms sending their top food-safety and quality-assurance executives to this year’s event. More than 200 companies displayed the newest technologies and services for food safety and security. While at the summit, several prominent representatives from the food industry held two briefings on food safety issues, one for the White House staff and another for congressional staff. The purpose of the briefings was to share information and outline steps the government can take to advance the safety and security of the nation’s food supply. “This year’s summit truly lived up to its billing as the nation’s largest and most important expo and conference on food safety, quality assurance and food security,” says Scott Goldman, president of Eaton Hall Exhibitions, producers of the event. “It brought together leaders in government and industry to discuss programs that are being implemented and developed to safeguard the food supply.”  

1-3: American Dairy Products Institute and American Butter Institute 2005 Annual Conference, Fairmont Hotel, Chicago, (630) 530-8700.

10-12: Sanitation Workshop, Randolph Associates Inc., Nashville, Tenn., (205) 595-6455, us@randolphconsulting.com.

14-15: DeLaurenti’s Seattle Cheese Festival, Pike Place Market, Seattle, contact Anne Theisen, (206) 849-7508.

21-24: 2005 National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, McCormick Place, Chicago, www.restaurant.org/show.

23-26: 3-A Sanitary Standards Inc. 2005 Annual Meeting, Four Points Sheraton Milwaukee Airport, Milwaukee, contact Timothy Rugh, (703) 790-0295.

24-25: Cultured Dairy Products Conference, International Dairy Foods Association, Courtyard by Marriott at the Depot, Minneapolis, www.idfa.org.

24-25: Cheese Packaging Short Course, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Department of Food Science, Madison, Wis., (608) 262-2046.

5-7: Dairy-Deli-Bake Seminar & Expo, International Dairy-Deli-Bakery Associa­tion, Minneapolis, (608) 238-7908.

7-8: Sensory Evaluation/QA Workshop, Randolph Associates Inc., Philadelphia, Pa., (205) 595-6455, us@randolphconsulting.com.

15-16: Washington Conference, Inter­national Dairy Foods Association, Washington Court, Washington, D.C., contact Tanika Manning, (202) 220-3557, www.idfa.org.

16-20: Institute of Food Technologists Annual Meeting and Food Expo, New Orleans, (312) 782-8424, e-mail info@ift.org.

24-28: ASAS-ADSA-CSAS Annual Meeting, the American Society of Animal Science (ASAS), American Dairy Science Association (ADSA) and Canadian Society of Animal Science (CSAS), Cincinnati Convention Center, www.fass.org/2005.

2-4: Advanced HACCP Short Course for the California Cheese Industry, Dairy Product Technology Center, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Calif., contact Jennifer Giambroni, (415) 254-4549.

11-14: 4th Annual International Whey Conference, American Dairy Products Institute, Hyatt Regency Hotel, Chicago, www.iwc-2005.org.

17-22: International Dairy Federation World Dairy Summit, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, contact Caroline Brooks, e-mail Cbrooks@fil-idf.org.

23-25: The NAFEM Show, North American Association of Food Equipment Manufacturers, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif., www.thenafemshow.org.

27-30: 6th Annual Dairy Science and Technology Basics for the Artisan/Farmstead Cheesemaker, Cal Poly Dairy Products Technology Center, San Luis Obispo, Calif., contact Laurie Jacobson, (805) 756-6097.

3-7: Dairy Technology Workshop, Randolph Associates Inc., Newport, Ky., (205) 595-6455, us@randolphconsulting.com.

8-12: National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Convention, San Francisco, info@nfraweb.org.

10-12: Sanitation Short Course, Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pa., e-mail ShortCourse@psu.edu.

11-13: FoodScan Instrument Training, Foss North America, Laughlin, Nev., (952) 974-9892, e-mail info@fossnorthamerica.com.

18-19: 10th Annual Cal Poly Dairy Cleaning and Sanitation Short Course, California Polytechnic State University Dairy Products Technology Center, San Luis Obispo, Calif., contact Laurie Jacobson, (805) 756-6097.

27-30: NAFFS 88th Annual Convention, The Resort at Longboat Key Club, Longboat Key, Fla., contact Diane Davis, (732) 922-3218, www.naffs.org.

26-29: Worldwide Food Expo, McCormick Place, Chicago, www.worldwidefood.com, www.idfa.org.