Washington, DC - Three
leading trend-watchers will headline the Annual
Meat Conference, offering insights into the
consumers of the future and how meat marketers
can satisfy their desire for a variety of meat
and poultry products. The Annual Meat
Conference will be held March 9-11, 2003, at
the Hilton Atlanta in Atlanta, GA.
During the first general session
"Survival Guide for Competing Intelligently &
Effectively in the Future," Dr. Barry Asmus,
senior economist at the National Center for
Policy Analysis, will offer his insights into
the near and long-term future of business,
technology and social and economic trends. And,
noted international business development expert
Ira Blumenthal will provide an in-depth
analysis of the competitive marketplace.
Asmus, named one of the five most
requested speakers in the U.S. by USA Today,
has addressed business and agriculture groups
of all sizes nationwide and is known for
translating complex economic ideas into simple
language people can understand. He also has
served as a principle commentator on a
nationally syndicated radio show called
"Perspectives on the Economy" and can now be
heard weekly on KMNY, a Los Angeles money and
business talk show. Blumenthal, a former
senior marketing manager for an innovative meat
and poultry processing company, is now an
author and featured media source for expertise
on branding, market strategies and business
development. The session will be held March 9
from 1:30-5 p.m.
Futurist Dr. Lowell
Catlett will offer his insights during the
Closing General Session "When Good Consumers Go
Bad: Re-capturing the Mind of the Consumer.”
Catlett, an economist and professor at New
Mexico State University, is an expert in
emerging technologies and their implications
for the way people live and work. He will
forecast how technology in both food production
and preparation will impact companies and
consumers alike. In a recent column called
"The Wealth Effect" Catlett said, "Customers
are doing two major things right now with
food-they are paying for brands and moving from
consuming commodity type food products to
higher quality products." As a consultant to
Fortune 500 companies nationwide, Catlett
offers advice on how to leverage these trends."
He is renowned for his animated, upbeat and
engaging presentation style that prompts
audiences to say "I never thought of it that
way." He received his doctorate in economics
from Iowa State University. The session will
be held March 11 from 9-11:30 a.m.
The Annual Meat Conference also will
include a product tasting reception, technology
fair and an agenda packed with insightful
information about trends in meat and poultry
marketing. The conference is sponsored by the
American Meat Institute and the Food Marketing
Institute. Associate sponsors include the
National Cattlemen's Beef Association, National
Chicken Council, National Pork Board and the
National Turkey Federation.
Registration for the conference is
$595 per person for members of sponsoring
organizations, $545 when three or more people
register together. To download the
registration form and for ongoing information
updates, go to http://www.meatconference.com.
For questions about registration, contact
Elizabeth Newton, enewton@fmi.org,
202/452-8444.
AMI represents the
interests of packers and processors of beef,
pork, lamb, veal and turkey products and their
suppliers throughout North America. Together,
AMI's members produce 95 percent of the beef,
pork, lamb and veal products and 70 percent of
the turkey products in the U.S. Headquartered
in Washington, DC, the Institute provides
legislative, regulatory, public relations,
technical, scientific and educational services
to the industry. Its affiliate, the AMI
Foundation, is a separate 501(c)3 organization
that conducts research, education and
information projects for the
industry.
Food Marketing Institute (FMI)
conducts programs in research, education,
industry relations and public affairs on behalf
of its 2,300 member companies - food retailers
and wholesalers - in the United States and
around the world. FMI's U.S. members operate
approximately 26,000 retail food stores with a
combined annual sales volume of $340 billion -
three-quarters of all food retail store sales
in the United States. FMI's retail membership
is composed of large multi-store chains,
regional firms and independent supermarkets.
Its international membership includes 200
companies from 60 countries.
Leading Experts Will 'Meat the Future' at Annual Meat Conference March 9-11, 2003, in Atlanta, GA
Tuesday, January 14, 2003
For more information contact:
Janet Riley Vice President, Public Affairs 703-841-3635 jriley@meatinstitute.org |
Josee Daoust Manager, Public Affairs 703-841-3641 jdaoust@meatinstitute.org |

