As an exhibitor for more than four decades, the California Avocado Commission (CAC) will continue to participate in this year’s virtual PMA Fresh Summit show PMA being held October 13-15, 2020.
“With the unprecedented situation this year, the Commission wants to continue to show our support for PMA and to benefit from the AI-driven platform they’ve put together,” says Jan DeLyser, vice-president of marketing for the Irvine, California-based CAC.
The show comes at a time when California’s avocado season is winding down, though DeLyser notes that supplies will continue to be available throughout September with lighter volumes available into October this year.
Photo: California Avocado Commission
Volume up significantly
“Supply was steady this year, and we continue to forecast the harvest will reach nearly 400 million pounds of California avocados this year compared with 216.6 million pounds of California avocados last season,” she says. “Demand has been strong.”
And while last year’s pricing was well above average given the shorter supplies, this year’s overall category pricing has proved to be more of a challenge. “Pricing had some periods of fluctuations, but overall, especially given the pandemic, California avocado pricing has exceeded expectations,” adds DeLyser.
At the virtual show, visitors will see California avocado content in various places, though how this will roll out is still being determined. “Our exact content is still in development,” says DeLyser, who adds that the CAC is a platinum sponsor this year. “We plan to showcase what makes California avocados different and how that brings value to customers. We will also highlight our award-winning marketing campaign.”
Photo: California Avocado Commission
Embracing new show features
While DeLyser says they’ll miss connecting with visitors in person, the CAC is embracing the new technology to help stay connected. “At an in-person show we schedule appointments with customers and industry partners and there is lots of opportunity for impromptu connections when walking the show floor and attending sessions and events. So, we will be putting more emphasis on scheduling time with our key customers in advance of the show and taking advantage of the platform to do so,” she says. “We will also take advantage of the opportunity to showcase videos that we might not typically use at an in-person show.”
DeLyser adds that the flexibility that’s being built into Fresh Summit’s programming is something she appreciates about the upcoming show. “I like that key sessions will be recorded are made available to review online when it works for our team members’ schedules,” she says. “I look forward to evaluating the meeting scheduling features—these features will maximize our team’s productivity.”
For more information:
Marji Morrow
California Avocado Commission
Tel: +1 (323) 456-6751
mmorrow@avocado.org
www.CaliforniaAvocado.com