(Top left): Felix Brandenburg- ASSUC, Adriana Nosewicz- Secretary General for EUPPA (European Potato Processors’ Association) and Helene Deruwe- Freshfel/EuroPatat. (Top Right): Peter Dijk- Agrico and Jan van Hoogen- Agrico. (Bottom left): Tommy Leighton- London Produce Show & Conference, Michel Bicheren- Green Giant Fresh Europe and Linda Bloomfield- Europatat/Freshfel. (Bottom right): Tarek Mohamed- Domiatec, Akmed Sameh Mohamed el Domiaty- Domiatec and Gerard Backx from HZPC Holland.
The header "Not business as usual", sums up all of the changes the sector in the EU has been facing recently including external factors such as oil prices and the fluctuation in the exchange rates, along with other factors such as the Schengen agreement, the Greek economy, the migrant crisis, social discontent amongst Europe, terrorist attacks, the Russian embargo, climate change and the fast changing world of technology.
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"When we look at our business and our consumer, there are a lot of changes happening today. The consumer is not the same, their lifestyles are changing along with the attitudes of the younger generation. Technology is changing how we can have things delivered after ordering things online. Tech is also affecting how business is done, with drone technology along with other factors which will have a great impact on the sector. All of these different factors has made it 'not business as usual' for the entire sector which is why Freshfel and Europatat have decided to work together to examine all of these recent changes."
Freshfel General Delegate Philippe Binard.
Between presentations, a video was shown where many different players in the industry, such as Hein Deprez-Univeg, Jose Pelaez-Sevillana de Patatas and Stephen Weist- Rewe, to name a few, were given the opportunity to discuss their opinions on the various topics. The clips covered the future of the fresh produce and potato sector, as well as the ambiguity of the consumer between innovation, sustainability and convenience.
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What's hot in 2016-
Franziska Krauskopf from Trendone presented the new ways that technology has and is simplifying things across the board and how we could be on the verge of the next big thing that could have a resounding effect on how everything is done. Trends are developing more rapidly than in the past to keep up with ever changing technologies. She showed visitors different clips on how different companies around the world are implementing this new technology to make their businesses more efficient with things such as drones which are getting smaller and more efficient, the Thinfilm sensor tag in Norway, Smart Logistics using google glasses which eliminates the need for paper, and predictive intelligence which can be used to connect the whole supply chain. She also brought along some examples which visitors were able to experience for themselves.
Stephan Weist from Rewe experiencing virtual reality first hand during the presentation from Franziska Krauskopf.
A more detailed report of this and other presentations will be published in Freshplaza.com in the coming week, so stay tuned!
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