Elmhurst, IL – Don't miss the conference that boasts to be the largest gathering of dairy decision makers anywhere in the world! The American Dairy Products Institute and American Butter Institute's 2016 Annual Conference will be held on April 24 – 26, at the Hyatt Regency in Chicago, Illinois.
ADPI and ABI are proud to announce that this year's conference program will address the dairy ingredient industry's latest challenges, obstacles and opportunities with presentations from a wide range of speakers, including industry executives, government officials and academia.
The Welcome Reception will be a great way to kick-off the conference on Sunday evening. This reception is the perfect opportunity for attendees to gather and renew old acquaintances as well as make new ones. As always, the annual golf outing will also take place on Sunday, with a 9am tee-time at the Ruffled Feathers Golf Course located in the Chicago suburb of Lemont.
Following a continental breakfast on Monday morning, a full day of outstanding speakers are on tap, starting with a panel of leading dairy economists consisting of Tom Bailey of Rabobank, Phil Plourd of Blimling and Associates and meteorologist Jon Davis, who will be discussing the current market conditions and outlook. This will be followed by a panel discussion on "Through the Beltway Looking Glass" which will include presentations from Autumn Veazey Price, Vice President of Government Relations from Land O'Lakes, Inc. and Jonathan Coppess from the University of Illinois. Congressional Staffer, Mark Epley has also been invited to join us.
Monday will also feature the Recognition Luncheon, where the recipients of ADPI's Award of Merit and Jim Page Memorial Scholarship will be announced and a presentation on the 2017 International Whey Conference will be made.
Monday's afternoon sessions will feature a new format this year as ADPI opens up their Committee and Task Force Meetings to all attendees. The Lactose Task Force Briefing will feature a supply and demand summary and an update on food applications for lactose and permeate. Topics covered in the Permeate Briefing will also include a supply and demand summary along with updates on feed applications, food use of permeate in China and the development of a Codex Standard for Permeate. The Dairy Ingredient Marketing Committee Briefing will feature a report from Dairy Market News, a discussion on price discovery challenges and the possibility of a spot market for whey powder as well as an update on protein quality assessment and a look at the SMP vs. NDM and trans-fat issues. The Alternative Cheese Color Task Force Briefing will include reports on the progress being made to develop cheese colorants that will address costumer concerns about color carry-over into whey-derived ingredients.
The Grand Chicago Reception, which is always a highlight of the Annual Meeting, will bring Monday's events to a close. This fun and relaxing "Taste of Chicago" reception will allow you to unwind and enjoy unique entertainment as you network with your industry peers. This premier reception showcases the diversity of Chicago's vast culinary communities. Complete with colorfully decorated food booths the delicious array of food is complemented by the sounds of the Chicago Blues.
The Dairy Industry Breakfast on Tuesday morning will feature a presentation focusing on "Innovation in Food Marketing – How to Catch Tomorrow's Consumers" by Thomas Talbert of Culinary Sales Support.
Following breakfast, Dave Thomas, ADPI CEO, will sit down with some of the leading dairy industry senior executives to discuss their views on the challenges and opportunities facing the industry. Panelists will include: David Ahlem with Hilmar Cheese, Jon Davis from Davisco, a business unit of Agropur, Michael Doyle from Foremost Farms and Kevin Ellis from Cayuga Milk Ingredients.
"Emerging Dairy Ingredients – What's on the Horizon," will be a panel discussion that will round out the Tuesday morning presentations. Phil Tong, Professor of Dairy Science at Cal Poly and ADPI Center of Excellence member will moderate this session which will include Lloyd Metzger, South Dakota State University; Dr. Andrew Keech, Founder of APS BioGroup, LLC and Véronique Lagrange with USDEC as panelists.
ADPI and ABI are proud to announce that Jim "The Rookie" Morris will be headlining this year's Industry Luncheon on Tuesday. Jim's life story is the inspiration behind the Walt Disney blockbuster film, "The Rookie," starring Dennis Quaid. Jim was a 35 year old schoolteacher in Texas who made the following bet with his high school baseball team: "You win the District Championship and I'll try out for a major league team." The team carried out their half of the bet and then Jim carried out his. Three months later, Jim, who had given up on his major league dreams 11 years before, made it to the big leagues.
The Tuesday afternoon program will feature short briefings on a number of important industry topics – including updates on: TPP and other trade agreements; the development of ingredient standards for infant formula; an update on risk management (Dodd Frank and CFT issues); Natural/GMO labeling issues; what's new in consumer trends for 2016 and highlights in the animal agriculture technology sector.
Separate Board of Directors meetings for ADPI and ABI, as well as assorted committee meetings, will be held on 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 1,000 senior level executives from manufacturers, marketers, suppliers, distributors and brokers of manufactured dairy products, and to connect with industry analysts, journalists, key government officials and trade exhibitors. Tuesday's Industry Reception will also allow attendees to sample a wide variety of world championship cheeses.
If you would like to become a part of this premier dairy event, advertising and sponsorship opportunities are currently available allowing you to market your company to every attendee!
Register online today! Visit the official conference website, www.adpi.org for conference information including online registration and exhibitor information. For more information on the 2016 ADPI/ABI Annual Conference you can contact the American Dairy Products Institute at 630-530-8700 or by email at info@adpi.org.
###
"Unleashing the Power of Dairy Ingredients"
ADPI – The American Dairy Products Institute is the leading national trade association representing manufacturers and marketers of dairy-based ingredients. ADPI's sole mission is to increase the worldwide use of dairy ingredients by marshaling the technical, manufacturing, and marketing resources of its members and others. For more information, visit our website at www.adpi.org
ABI – The American Butter Institute (ABI) is an Arlington, VA-based trade association for manufacturers, processors, marketers and distributors of butter and butter products. ABI's mission is to promote and protect the interests and welfare of the industry. For more on ABI's activities, visit our website at www.butterinstitute.org.
Source: ADPI & ABI