The PMA Fresh Summit has become a significant stage for producers to interact and showcase their products. Many are aware of how important it is to attend and participate in such events to keep their business moving forward and in step with the latest trends.
Sunset Produce, an onion and shallot producer based in Washington, has seen the value of exhibiting at the event and is looking forward to doing the same this year. "Last year was our first year with our own booth," said Steve Proctor, of Sunset Produce. "We had been attending the event in previous years but really started seeing the value of having a presence there ourselves and this year we are excited to be exhibiting again."
Participation key to building business
After attending the event as an observer for a number of years, Sunset Produce decided that not exhibiting would devalue their presence on the market. They found it was an ideal way to engage with customers, make deals and network with peers in the industry.
"We are a major supplier of onions and shallots in the United States so we found we couldn't afford not to be there," said Proctor. "Most other producers are there so we decided we needed a presence to keep in step with the market. It's a great way to engage with our customers and suppliers. We always have contacts arranged, but sometimes it's the unexpected ones you encounter that create great business opportunities. There's also no doubt that having a booth raises our profile in the industry. For example, we saw a measured increase in website traffic and new customers over the last year. We attribute this largely to being present and active at last year's Fresh Summit."
Opportunity to showcase their operations
In their booth, Sunset aim to present their operations in a fun, bright way and to enable visitors to see the production of the crop from planting through to shipping. They will also be demonstrating some of their packaging options, including presenting a new type of bag.
"On display in our booth will be a selection of our typical crop of red, yellow, white and sweet onions, as well as our cipollinis and shallots," Proctor continued. "We will also have a video loop that displays all our farming operations from start to finish, planting to shipping. It will include time-lapse footage of the same onion field through the seasons. Also on display will be some of our packaging and also a new variation of our onion bags. Another aspect we will present and talk about is our technology that injects IR light into the product to internally scan it and identify diseases."
Sunset Produce can be found at the PMA Fresh Summit in booth 1501.
For more information:
Steve Proctor
Sunset Produce
Tel: 509-786-3996