“JANUARY…the first month of the year, a perfect time to start all over again, changing energies and deserting old moods, new beginnings, new attitudes.”
~ Charmaine J. Forde

On behalf of the FPSA Team, I want to wish you a very Happy New Year. We appreciate your continued support and participation in your Association. A great way to start your year off right is to be aware of and become involved in an outstanding array of services, programs, and activities that FPSA has planned. Be sure to include them to your yearly calendar!

First, I am sure the FPSA Annual Conference being held March 4th – 6th in beautiful, snow- free Carlsbad, CA, is already on your 2020 calendar. This year’s conference is packed with an outstanding array of great speakers and engaging networking activities. We are particularly excited to hear from Jim Donald, the former CEO of Starbucks, Pathmark Supermarkets, and Extended Stay Hotels, and currently the co-chairman of the Board of Albertson’s. Jim is a seasoned executive with a distinguished career in retail and was named one of the “Top 25 CEOs in the World” by The Best Practice Institute and one of Business Travel News’ “25 Most Influential Business Travel Executives”. During his keynote address, he will be sharing his experiences as a leader focused on innovation, quality, service, strong relationships within the community, and risk-taking with the freedom to fail. Click HERE to read more about his impressive career.

In addition to Jim Donald, we have a great line-up of industry speakers from companies such as Nestle, Mars, The J.M. Smucker Company, Templar Food Products, Base Culture, Coca-Cola, Caribbean Food Delights and Deli Star. Stay tuned for more to be added later this month!

And, a great time will once again be had by all attendees at the FPSA Auction where we will be raising funds for a variety of great charitable causes. Please click HERE for the schedule of events, registration information, and hotel reservations at the Park Hyatt Aviara. Book now as rooms at the discounted FPSA rate are limited. I look forward to seeing you there.

Second, the start of the year brings the launch of our Career Development Scholarship program with our Foundation awarding up to 15 scholarships to FPSA members' employees and immediate family members. The application process begins January 10th and ends on April 17th. Winners will be notified in June. To learn more about the program, please click HERE. If you need more posters to place throughout your office to promote the program, please contact Ann Marie Penaranda at apenaranda@fpsa.org.

Third, over the holidays the new quarterly newsletter of the FPSA Networks, Network Connections, was mailed. If you didn’t receive it, you can view the latest issue HERE which recaps the Networks’ many accomplishments in 2019. They’re already hard at work planning activities and deliverables for 2020, including meetings at the Annual Conference and the structure of a Network Leadership Team which consists of the Chairs and Vice- Chairs.

Fourth, mark your calendars for the Fall Sales Conference being held September 21st- 23rd of 2020 at the Sheraton Chicago O'Hare Hotel. This event will provide managers, directors, VP’s of sales as well as the C-suite with strategies and insights to accelerate sales growth and improve sales performance and results.

Fifth, another beneficial membership tool is the Job Board which is a free and highly valuable resource for companies to help find new and talented individuals to join their team. Over 130 job postings have been advertised since its launch last March.

Sixth, we also encourage you to take part in our FREE informative webinars that will be held during 2020. The first webinar for 2020 welcomes Carole Tonello-Samson, Hiperbaric’s Commercial and Applications Director and recipient of the Women’s Alliance Network’s 2019 Red Circle Honor for Innovation and Inspiration. The Technology Network Chair, Matthew Hartman (Blentech Corp.) will interview Carole as she discusses high pressure processing technology, which has proven useful in meat products, seafood, juices, and avocado products. This webinar will air January 23rd. Click HERE to register.

Seventh, our “global trends and forecast studies” for 2020 are in production and will be released in the first quarter of the year. New reports include Pet Food Packaging, Extruded Snacks, Fresh Food Packaging and Meat Substitutes. Updated reports include the Meat Processing Equipment and Pet Food Processing Equipment Markets.

Last and most importantly, in order to ensure that PE 2021 will be the success that we all want it to be, a detailed membership driven assessment/evaluation will be completed that will result in the development of specific plans and actions that will be implemented to improve PROCESS EXPO.

I hope that you, like your FPSA team, are off to a great start in tackling your tasks for this year. I look forward to working with you to help your company and our association achieve the many great successful outcomes, products, and services throughout the year.

Sincerely,

David Seckman
President/CEO
FPSA