Potato Expo Digital Guide - 2021 - 4

Table of Contents
At a Glance ................................ 6
Schedule .................................. 16
General Sessions ........... 16
Breakout Sessions ....... 20
Exhibitor List ........................ 28
Sponsor List .......................... 28
Multiple places
at one time
By Zeke Jennings
Spudman Managing Editor
I
've worked in trade publications for six years and
communications for more than 15. So, I've been to a fair share
of trade shows and conferences. The first Potato Expo I attended
was in 2019, and I was beyond impressed with the level of
educational speakers and knowledge of all the folks working the
exhibitor booths.
The company to keep and food to eat was pretty darn good
too. Unfortunately, we'll all be responsible for making our own
food this year and the company will be screen-to-screen instead
of in-person. The pandemic, however, hasn't stopped the
National Potato Council from putting together an impressive
lineup of educational sessions, speakers and exhibitors. I
participated in several virtual trade shows last year, and they do
offer some benefits over a traditional event.
The biggest, in my opinion, is the ability to essentially be in
two places at once. An in-person trade show sometimes has
overlapping educational sessions or events that one has to
choose between. With a virtual event, if you can't attend an event
live, in most cases, you can go back and watch it later.
One of this year's Expo keynote speakers is Michael Sansolo,
who has more than 35 years of experience tracking food
retail trends. Sansolo will speak about the changes to food
consumption during the pandemic and what lasting effects they
may have long-term during his " COVID-19: What Happened and
What's Coming Next for Consumers? " address on Jan. 6.
During a recent episode of the " Eye on Potatoes " podcast,
On the cover:
Due to ongoing COVID-19
concerns, Potato Expo is going
digital this year. The virtual
platform, shown on the cover,
will be live and taped general
sessions, breakout sessions
and other content on a variety
of topics affecting the potato
industry and potato growers
moving forward.
Sansolo said it's impossible to predict returns to foodservice,
given the unknown, but said one lasting effect could be the
move toward online shopping in the retail sector.
" This could change how displays are built in the future. Folks
in any industry have to be thinking, 'How are we going to
communicate with shoppers in this new environment?' "
An opportunity for the potato industry, or really any food
industry, is to capitalize on the fact that a lot of people started
cooking food at home who previously did not, or at least didn't
do so often.
" We're going to have to bake in those gains we've made, " said
Sansolo, citing things like marketing recipes and baking strategies.
" People saw that cooking from home can work for them. "
So, definitely make use of this virtual format and explore
everything. I know I will.
4
Potato Expo
Potato Expo Digital Guide - 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Potato Expo Digital Guide - 2021
