The Elmhurst, Ill.-based American Dairy Products Institute (ADPI) said it expresses its concern and support to and for its members, colleagues, suppliers, exhibitors, sponsors, conference attendees and their respective organizations who have been impacted by the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) health emergency.

All things considered, and in the spirit of health and safety first, ADPI said the 22nd Dairy Ingredients Technical Symposium, originally scheduled to be held March 17-19 in Santa Barbara, Calif., is now rescheduled for October 11-13, 2020. The location and venue will remain the same, with the event taking place at the Hilton Beachfront Resort in Santa Barbara.

This week, the governor of California, Gavin Newsom, declared a state of emergency for the state, and as a result, many organizations have expressed concerns about attending group events held within the state in the near term. In addition, ADPI has heard from members, conference attendees and speakers that their companies are also restricting travel and meeting attendance out of an abundance of caution.

ADPI said it hopes the newly scheduled time for the symposium will allow all currently registered participants to still attend and without concern of the unknowns currently associated with coronavirus. In conjunction with this change of date, ADPI will maintain an open dialogue with its members, sponsors, speakers and symposium attendees and provide updates via the ADPI website (www.adpi.org), the ADPI e-Blast communication system, social media and dedicated emails, as appropriate. 

As this remains a complicated and evolving situation, ADPI said it will continue to monitor it closely by:

• Watching COVID-19 developments through several resources, including local, national and international public health department and agency sources to provide the most up to date information.
• Continue in conversations with local agencies working together to identify different scenarios and action plans to provide necessary precautions to protect all attendees in this and future conferences.
• Remain in close conversations with local authorities in California and the Santa Barbara venue to provide appropriate health and safety plans for the rescheduled event.
• Monitor and seek expert counsel as this situation evolves.

Any further questions may be directed to info@adpi.org.