Food Futurist Suzy Badaracco to Speak at NEPC Expo this Fall

The New England Produce Council Inc. has announced that Suzy Badaracco, president of Culinary Tides Inc., will speak about “a future without fear” at the NEPC Produce, Floral & Food Service Expo, scheduled to take place Sept. 29-30 at the Hynes Convention Center in Boston.

In the coming weeks, the council will be announcing additional speakers to its annual event, which as always will feature a VIP reception and a keynote breakfast in addition to the trade show.

The title of Badaracco’s presentation is “How to Use Strategic Thinking to Navigate Trends for 2021 & Beyond: A Future Without Fear.”

Gearing up for a post-pandemic environment, the expo committee believes that Badaracco will offer much insight on produce trends for the next two years. Not only is the current environment changing rapidly, there are two influences that are acting independently: COVID-19 and recession.

“Products and messaging should evolve ahead of consumer behavioral changes so they hit when consumers are their most receptive,” said Badaracco. “Other influences, including health and consumer drivers, will be discussed as they pertain to the shaping of marketplace trends and how they impact the creation of new products. Equally important is the ability to recognize and adapt to upcoming changes in trend direction and to differentiate between long- and short-lived trends.

Some tools that Badaracco will offer as take-aways from the presentation will be:

* Understand the issues pertaining to elements influencing produce trends in order to successfully navigate them.

* Cross analyze trend information to generate actionable intelligence.

* Better predict the opportunities and pathways for making produce products successful in the marketplace.

Badaracco holds a bachelor of science degree in criminalistics, an associate degree in culinary arts, and a master of science degree in human nutrition. She has been trained in military intelligence, chaos theory and predictive analysis techniques, and has been practicing trends intelligence and predictive forecasting for more than 15 years. Using these techniques, she has been able to successfully predict and profile government, technology, adversary and ally, food, flavor, consumer, industry and health trends.

Culinary Tides Inc. helps food industry partners navigate trends by revealing relevant patterns so they can create products that connect with customers. The company specializes in foretelling a trend’s birth and forecasting its trajectory, personality and longevity.  The forecast results are used to create entrance, navigation and exit strategies.

For additional information on the NEPC expo, visit www.newenglandproducecouncil.com or contact NEPC Executive Director Laura Sullivan at 781-273-0444.