FOUNDATIONAL
EXCELLENCE
Laying the Groundwork to Excellence. The Cornell University Future-Leaders-In-Produce Foundational Excellence Program is crafted specifically for produce industry executives with less than 5 years’ experience to fill a void of educational opportunities for this group of produce professionals.
NEW YORK PRODUCE SHOW
Sheraton New York Times Square
Tuesday, December 10th, 2024
Speakers:
Why attend the Foundational Excellence Program?
What will I learn?
The Cornell University Future-Leaders-In-Produce Program was crafted specifically for produce industry executives with less than 5 years’ experience to fill a void of educational opportunities for this group of produce professionals.
We invite you to join us for this career-building 1-day overview and educational immersion into the structure and operations of the produce industry, including topics such as food system economics, product and information flows, consumer and competitive trends and other critical industry issues.
FOUNDATIONAL EXCELLENCE PROGRAM
AGENDA
TUES., DECEMBER 10th – SHERATON NEW YORK TIMES SQUARE – RIVERSIDE BALLROOM
8:30 am
Breakfast
9:30 am
Welcome and Introductory Comments
Ken Whitacre, Chief Executive, Phoenix Media Network, and Publisher, Produce Business
9:45am
The Global Scope of the Fresh Produce Industry
Miguel Gómez, Professor
Professor Gómez will talk about the global reach of the produce industry and its implications for the U.S. produce sector. Whether you are working for a wholesaler in El Paso, Texas, or in a supermarket in the Midwest, or if you are a fresh produce manager or a broker, the industry is becoming more global every year. It will affect the way you operate.
Gomez will discuss the drivers and trends of the international trade of fruits and vegetables. He will examine the interdependence of the U.S. produce industry with global partners, both in exports and imports, and address other factors affecting U.S. produce trade – including emerging technologies, trade agreements, tariffs and other policies affecting global produce supply chains. He will also discuss the global impact of Controlled Environment Agriculture and why sustainability is key for resilient global supply chains.
10:30 am
The U.S. Food System and Fresh Produce
Kristen Park, Extension Associate
Park, an associate in Cornell’s Food Industry Management Program, will present a broad overview of the who, what, where, and how of the produce industry. She will examine fruit and vegetable trends and produce supply chain members. Her talk will help establish a foundation to support discussions for all attendees.
11:15 am
Trends in Cuisine
Lilly Jan, Professor
Explore the evolving landscape of food and dining, shaped by shifting consumer preferences and broader societal trends. Changing tastes, lifestyles, and values influence what we eat, how we source food, and the dining experiences we seek. From new culinary movements to innovative approaches in food service, discover the trends that are redefining how consumers interact with food today. Whether you’re part of the food industry or simply curious about where dining is headed, gain fresh insights into the future of food and the dynamics of consumer behavior
12:00 pm
Networking Lunch
1:00 pm
Panel of Young Produce Industry Professionals
Moderated by Ken Whitacre
Join us for a dynamic panel discussion featuring the fresh produce industry’s rising stars, including those from the Eastern Produce Council’s leadership group. These young professionals are innovatively shaping the future of agriculture, sustainability and distribution. Gain insights into the challenges and opportunities they face, their perspectives on sustainability, technology integration and consumer trends. Learn how the next generation is driving positive change in the world of fresh produce. Do not miss this opportunity to hear from and engage with the industry’s future leaders.
2:00 pm
The AI Transformation
Karan Girotra, Professor
Recent advances in artificial intelligence enable machines to perform, support, and enhance new classes of cognitive work, a category expansion in automation capabilities not seen since the invention of digital computers. These advances have the potential to usher in a business transformation akin to that of other general-purpose inventions such as the steam engine. We can expect these technologies to: radically increase individual, managerial and team productivity; enable disruptive new business models; fundamentally redistribute economic power; and reorganize work and society.
In this session, Professor Girotra (co-founder of Cornell Tech, the university’s $2 billion flagship technology and business initiative) will illustrate how we are at the very start of this transformation and shine a light on the long, fruitful road ahead.
2:45 pm
Using AI to Reduce Waste
Professor Elena Belavina
Food waste is a moral, economic, and environmental problem. Recent advances in artificial intelligence technologies have, for the first time, enabled inexpensive monitoring of perishable food flows in commercial kitchens. Using computer-vision technology, we can now instrument food operations almost as well as production operations in manufacturing industries with standardized parts.
In this talk, Professor Belavina, a world-leading expert on food waste, will describe her learnings and observations from her multiyear collaboration with the developer of a computer-vision-based food tracking system and several food establishments that deployed these measurement systems. She also will discuss her ongoing work to develop AI copilots for food managers.
3:30 pm
Research with Produce Consumers
Brad Rickard, Professor
Professor Rickard will provide insights from four research projects at Cornell that focus on consumer behavior in the produce sector. He will highlight findings from research that studies consumer response to advertising efforts (such as ‘5 A Day’) that are commonly used to promote fruits and vegetables, as well as commodity-specific advertising. Next, he will discuss the increasingly key role of patented produce items for growers, food retailers, and consumers and examine the importance of how patented varieties are commercialized and released in the marketplace. He will also present results from recent and ongoing research that assess consumer response to produce developed with modern breeding techniques and close with findings examining the impact of introducing and expanding categories in food retailing.
4:15 pm
Q&A and Closing Remarks
Ken Whitacre, Chief Executive, Phoenix Media Network, and Publisher, Produce Business
FOUNDATIONAL EXCELLENCE PROGRAM
SPEAKERS
Kristen Park
Extension Associate, Cornell University
With an M.S. Animal Science, Michigan State University and a M.S. in Agricultural, Resource, and Managerial Economics, Cornell University, Park conducts applied research on a variety of food marketing issues, most notably for the fresh produce distribution system.
Park, with the Food Industry Management team, recently completed a study of produce procurement offices. She also recently authored two chapters in the book, Growing Local: Case Studies on Local Food Supply Chains. In addition, she was a member of a multi-state team, funded by USDA, which assessed benefits of regionally produced foods for retailers and consumers located in low income communities. She led the development of eleven supply chain case studies for the team.
Park has researched an extensive census of a multi-country growing region in New York State assessing current and future production of fruits and vegetables, the viability of the food and beverage industry in New York State, and was an author of a series of research projects and reports produced for The Produce Marketing Association, the Fresh Track reports.
She also has the privilege of selecting and traveling with Cornell students on various international field trips and trade association conventions, including Produce Marketing Association’s Fresh Summit, the New York Produce Show, the London Produce Show and the Amsterdam Produce Show.
Brad Rickard
Professor, Cornell University
Brad Rickard is a professor of Applied Economics and Management in the Dyson School. His teaching and research focus on the economic implications of policies, innovation, and industry-led initiatives in food and beverage markets. Results from his research have been highlighted by various media outlets including Buffalo News, The Economist, Freakonomics.com, National Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and Wine Spectator. Professor Rickard is also an editor for the Journal of Wine Economics.
Professor Rickard’s research program examines issues at the intersection of agricultural markets, food policy, and international trade. His research has assessed how markets for specialty crops respond to changes in nutrition and health information, food labeling practices, promotional efforts, agricultural policy reform, trade liberalization, and the introduction of new technologies. His current work is studying the economics of food waste and the effects of policy initiatives that might be used to mitigate food waste.
Professor Rickard’s extension program is closely tied to his research activities and focuses on answering economic, marketing, and policy questions that are important to horticultural producers, particularly fruit and vegetable growers, in New York State. In addition, as part of his extension program he works with researchers across units in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to study issues in a multi-disciplinary framework.
Miguel I. Gómez
Professor, Cornell University
Miguel is the Robert G. Tobin Associate Professor in the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, Cornell University. He is director of the Food Industry Management Program, which is recognized globally as the premier food industry education, research, and outreach program.
His research concentrates broadly on the study of food marketing and distribution issues with emphasis on fresh produce. Specifically, his research focuses on how to improve the economic and sustainability performance of food value chains; and on the economics of food markets to enhance benefits for value chains participants, including growers, packers/shippers, manufacturers, retailers and consumers.
Elena Belavina
Associate Professor, Cornell University
Elena Belavina is an associate professor at the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business. She collaborates with startups, established companies, and public agencies to study sustainable food systems and transportation. In collaboration with a leading food-tech company, her recent research examines the impact of adopting computer-vision-enabled tech on food waste in commercial kitchens. It also develops machine-learning-based classifiers for the detection of food-production problems.
Previously, Belavina studied how the grocery industry’s structure and pricing policies influence food waste, the environmental impact of online grocery shopping, and the design of bike-share systems.
Prior to joining Cornell, Belavina was on the faculty of the Booth School at the University of Chicago. She earned a Ph.D. from INSEAD, and bachelor’s and master’s degrees in applied mathematics and physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology.
Karan Girotra
Professor, Cornell University
Karan’s research, teaching, consulting, and public engagement are focused on the promise and perils of artificial intelligence— how these technologies can improve personal and organizational productivity, enable new business models, shift economic power, and, at the same time, lead to false hope, excesses, unintended uses, and unaccounted negative externalities.
Karan is one of the founders of Cornell Tech, Cornell University’s New York City-based campus that integrates research and teaching on technology, business, and law. He leads Cornell Tech’s research on AI and business transformation, working closely with industry leaders.
In addition to his academic work, Karan was one of the founders of TerraPass Inc., which The New York Times identified as one of the most noteworthy ideas of 2005. Since then, TerraPass has helped businesses and individuals reduce over a hundred million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Lilly Jan
Lecturer, Cornell University
Lilly Jan is a food and beverage management academic, consultant, and chef, with nearly 20 years in hospitality and foodservice. She is currently a faculty member of Cornell University’s Hotel School in Ithaca, N.Y., teaching courses in food and beverage management, food culture, foodservice facility design and hospitality leadership.
A frequently invited speaker for executive education, conferences and industry-related events, Jan speaks on food and restaurant trends as well as food and beverage culture as it relates to women, racial and ethnic minorities and LGBTQIA+ individuals. She served as the faculty director for James Beard Foundation’s Women Entrepreneurial Leadership Program from 2021-2024.
As a consultant, she has worked with Fortune 100 companies to craft hospitality offerings, industry NGOs to research trends, and F&B entrepreneurs having helped usher food trucks, on-demand food delivery, consumer packaged goods start-ups, and retail food stores to market.
FOUNDATIONAL EXCELLENCE PROGRAM
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Enhance Your New York Produce Show Presence. With more than 5,000 produce and floral professionals attending, The New York Produce Show and Conference delivers tremendous opportunity to do more business. Reach the highest level of retail and foodservice buying decision-makers. Sponsorships enhance your exhibitor experience and add more value.
VIEW OUR FULL RANGE OF NEW YORK PRODUCE SHOW SPONSORSHIPS HERE.
OVERALL SPONSOR (2 Available – non-compete)
IN ADDITION TO ENJOYING the benefits of general promotion at The New York Produce Show, your company will also be entitled to a 3-minute presentation and placement of your product and literature on the tables within the Foundational Excellence Program.
BREAKFAST SPONSOR (5 available)
ATTENDEES FROM THE PRODUCE COMMUNITY will gather in the morning before educational sessions begin. If you have a new product or service that is being introduced, this would be an excellent opportunity to showcase the product.
LUNCHEON SPONSOR (5 available)
INCORPORATE YOUR PRODUCE ITEM into one of the dishes served to the attendees, and leave behind your promotional materials for them to take home. Address the attendees with your 2-minute personal message.
LUNCHEON SPEAKER PANEL SPONSOR (3 available)
AUDIO VISUAL SPONSOR (5 available)
All sponsors receive the following special recognition:
Company logo on signage throughout the Javits Center, in hotel meeting areas, and within the official Show Directory.
Company logo on The New York Produce Show and Conference website’s sponsor page.
Sponsors recognized during opening reception, keynote breakfast and on visual communications throughout the show.
Recognition in Produce Business magazine.
To discuss tailored packages that support your marketing objectives, please contact us here.
Contact Us
Boca Raton, Florida 33481
United States
(561) 994-1118