NJ Food Processors to Highlight How to Succeed in the Changing Environment

By Michele Hujber
The New Jersey Food Processors Association will hold its 2011 Annual Meeting and Conference on January 31 at the at the Westin Hotel  in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. New Jersey’s Lt. Governor Kim Guadagno and Caren Franzini, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority, will be the opening keynote speakers, and Douglas H. Fisher, secretary of the New Jersey Department of Agriculture will present the closing keynote. The conference theme is “2020 Foresight: Planning for Success in a Changing Environment,” and these keynote speakers will each talk about changes in the business climate in the state and the state’s priorities for the years ahead.
“This year’s annual conference agenda is jam-packed with information on the economic environment, legislation, and other critical issues that will highlight what businesses in the food processing sector need to know to succeed in today’s business climate and into the future,” said Lou Cooperhouse, president of the New Jersey Food Processors Association and president and COO, F&S Produce Company, Inc. “We are expecting this to be our largest annual conference ever, with more than 200 attendees and 36 exhibits.”
Other scheduled speakers include John Stanton, chair and professor of Food Marketing at St. Joseph’s University, Herb Cohen, partner at Emerging Strategies Group and host of Executive Leaders Radio, and David Brogan, vice president of Environmental Policy at the NJ Business and Industry Association.
Stanton will talk about the changing landscape of the food industry. He will show the how food sales are moving away from traditional supermarkets to a variety of new retailers, some not traditionally associated with food.  The new reality will include a number of new players to the food retail business.
 Cohen will do a presentation on the personal and corporate qualities that will be needed for success in changing times. His unique presentation will be based upon recent interviews he has conducted with senior executives from the NJFPA, and will be very strategic, inspiring, motivational, and informative for conference attendees.    
Brogan will speak about legislative issues that are affecting our businesses.  His presentation will focus on recent action on pro-business bills, a political outlook for 2011, and pro-business priorities for the upcoming year.
The meeting will provide networking and educational opportunities for food manufacturing and marketing businesses that operate in New Jersey and the surrounding region and for suppliers to the food industry. Emerging Strategies Group, a management consulting firm from Blue Bell, PA, is the event sponsor.
The conference will occur on January 31, 2011 and run from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. A continental breakfast will be available between 7:30 a.m. and 8:30 a.m., and lunch will be served from noon until 1:30 p.m.
The hours of 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. to noon have been set aside exclusively for networking and visiting exhibits of the NJFPA’s associate members. The exhibits are positioned so that there will be exposure throughout the conference, which runs until 1:30 p.m.
The cost to attend the conference is $60 per person, which includes continental breakfast and served lunch. Associate member registrants may reserve display tables in the pre-conference area for $250; premium area to the side of the meeting room are sold out. The cost of the exhibit booth includes registration for one person, with one continental breakfast and one served lunch included.
For additional conference information and to register, visit the event web site at http://www.njfoodprocessors.org/about_conf.html or contact Michele Hujber, NJFPA executive secretary, at [email protected] or 732-439-5625.
About the Food Processors Association
 
The New Jersey Food Processors Association’s manufacturing member companies represent all facets of the New Jersey food processing industry, including meat and poultry, seafood, dairy products, cereals and grain products, fruits and vegetables, value-added agricultural products, specialty foods, and prepared foods and beverages. In addition, its associate member companies represent food packaging and ingredient suppliers, food industry equipment providers, service providers, consultants, quality assurance laboratories, chemical and sanitation companies, distribution and shipping firms, and other suppliers. The association was chartered in 1934, and the group had earlier meetings dating to 1904. Visit the association’s web site at http://www.njfoodprocessors.org/.