The 2014 Annual Conference of the American Butter Institute & the American Dairy Products Institute will be held April 27-April 29, 2014, at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. The 2014 Conference promises to be truly educational and informative, and will feature two days of speakers and programs on various industry topics. As in the past few years, record attendance is expected.
“This meeting is a great opportunity for not only networking and interacting with industry leaders, but it also presents a great venue to meet with customers. The dairy industry’s landscape has changed considerably, not just domestically but internationally, and the sessions presented at the meeting provide attendees insight into how to prepare for these changes,” said David Riemersma, President of Butterball Farms, who also serves as President of ABI.
The meeting will kick off Sunday evening with two keynote speakers. First will be Anthony Morgan, former wide receiver who played six seasons in the NFL, first for the Chicago Bears (1991–1993) and then the Green Bay Packers (1993–1996). Second, we will welcome Otis Wilson, a former linebacker for the Chicago Bears and the Los Angeles Raiders. Mr. Wilson won a Super Bowl as a member of the 1985 Chicago Bears team where he was a featured soloist of the “Shuffling Crew” in the video The Super Bowl Shuffle in 1985. Both Morgan and Wilson work to spread the message about Fuel Up to Play 60 campaign. NFL PLAY 60 is the league’s youth health and fitness campaign.
Monday’s session will begin with opening remarks by Craig Alexander, President, ADPI and David Riemersma, President, ABI. Mary Ledman, Tim Hunt and Jon Davis will lead a panel discussion on the industry’s current market conditions and outlook. Next will be a panel discussion and review of the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), which was passed by Congress on December 21, 2010 to ensure food supply by shifting the focus of federal regulators from responding to contamination, to preventing it. Hear from leading speakers who will provide an update on proposed rules on FSMA and their impact on the dairy industry.
The 2014 ADPI Award of Merit recipient was announced last week by Dave Thomas, Executive Director, ADPI. Mr. Thomas noted that the ADPI Board is pleased to announce that Jerry Kozak, who served as ABI Executive Director for over 22 years, and recently retired President and CEO of the National Milk Producers Federation, has been selected as this year’s recipient of the ADPI Award of Merit. The award luncheon will be held on Monday, April 28th.
After 20 years of use in the U.S. market, genetically-modified foods continue to generate controversy, at least among certain segments of both consumers and food marketers. More states are expected to consider laws mandating the labeling of foods with GMOs, even as food marketers are working to create a voluntary labeling system. A panel discussion of stakeholders from across the value chain will discuss GMO use, and the stakes for the dairy industry. That panel will be followed by a session on Dairy Risk Management, where attendees will hear about the new rules and regulations from the CFTC mandated by Dodd-Frank.
Tuesday’s program begins with a morning breakfast with Ross Christieson, U.S. Dairy Export Council, who will present opportunities and challenges for dairy ingredient sales in the Middle East and North Africa. This will be followed by a CEO Panel on the challenges and opportunities in the dairy ingredient sector.
The Industry Luncheon will feature Paul Grave, managing director of GlobalDairyTrade (GDT). Separate Board of Directors meetings for ADPI and ABI, as well as several committee meetings, will be held during the afternoons on both Monday and Tuesday.
The complimentary social hours held each afternoon in the exhibit hall and the sizeable receptions held on Monday and Tuesday evenings will provide abundant opportunities to network with over 750 senior-level dairy executives, including manufacturers, marketers, suppliers, distributors and brokers of manufactured dairy products. Tuesday’s reception will also allow attendees to taste test a variety of world championship cheeses.