ORLANDO, FL - The Produce Marketing Association’s (PMA) Fresh Summit 2018 is right around the corner. The sold out show will feature a newly revamped Thursday-Friday format, the same great show floor experience, and a variety of ways to network, build your brand, edify yourself and your team, and experience one of the premier events in our industry.

I recently sat down with Cathy Burns to discuss some of these changes, enhancements, and opportunities—and learn more about what attendees can expect to happen at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, October 18-20th.

“The genesis of these changes came from the Fresh Summit committee—from our volunteer leaders and from our members who have a passion for making this the world’s premier event for our industry—and hopefully you’ll see and experience that when we all come together in Orlando,” Cathy Burns, CEO of PMA, told me. “And I would be remiss if I didn’t thank the Fresh Summit committee for their vision and for the revisions of this landmark event, and I’m very humbled that this year is going to be another great example of what can happen when volunteer leaders put their heads together.”

From Thursday evening’s opening reception to the last hour of the Friday-Saturday show floor, the show promises to offer an unparalleled experience for networking, education, and edifying ourselves as produce pros.

“We’re excited about the opening reception; that will be held Thursday night—with a Global Street Festival theme,” Cathy told me. “At South by Southwest we had a activation there; we created a ‘Global Street Farm’ that was a great success. We’re expanding that to represent the world. So we’ll have a global street festival at the welcoming reception Thursday.”

This years event promises a new collection of Forums for the Future—4 Big Voice from inside and outside the industry tackling 4 Big Topics, sharing important insights about innovation, entrepreneurialism, and more.

“We have four exciting Forums For the Future. In between each of those forums—where we have terrific voices talking about important topics at those four sessions,” Cathy explained. “And we’re also hosting what we call ‘experience extensions’ covering everything from transportation to food safety to growing the trade. We’re going to have a Blockchain Village where attendees can get a hands-on experience to better understand what blockchain is all about. We’ll be promoting our Center for Growing Talent—CGTbyPMA. Each of those extensions will happen in between ourForums for the Future.”

Forums for the Future participants include Cathy, Wired Magazine Editor in Chief Greg Williams, Tony Award-Winning Actor & Musician Leslie Odom Jr., and on Friday morning, Peyton Manning will kick off the show floor experience. The two-time Super Bowl champion and five-time NFL MVP will share experiences regarding perseverance, overcoming obstacles, and succeeding despite challenges.

After that, it’s on to the two days of show floor experience you’ve come to expect from PMA Fresh Summit.

“After the first round on Friday morning with Peyton Manning, we’re going to be opening the Expo,” Cathy continued. “The expo is open an extra hour on Friday. Based on the Fresh Summit committee’s feedback, we decided we wanted to give attendees the opportunity to capture every hour possible between Friday and Saturday.“

We will see you in Orlando!

PMA