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Representatives of Petfood Industry magazine announced Kansas City, Mo., as the new event location for Petfood Forum 2015 during the annual event's opening keynote address on April 1. The 23rd edition of Petfood Forum will be held April 27-29, 2015, at the Kansas City Convention Center.
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Petfood Forum is an exclusive conference for the global petfood industry and includes educational sessions, a large exhibit hall featuring leading industry suppliers, several networking opportunities and visits from pets from humane organizations. It is followed by Petfood Workshop, an interactive symposium focused on a specific industry topic.
Features of the new event location in 2015 include the Kansas City Marriott Downtown as host hotel with a connected walkway to the Kansas City Convention Center, expanded exhibit and meeting spaces, nearby entertainment district and regional connections to petfood manufacturing and animal health industries.
"As the global petfood industry and Petfood Forum continued to grow over the past several years, it was clear we would need a bigger space to better serve the needs of our attendees and exhibitors," said Steve Akins, vice president and publisher of Petfood Industry magazine. "We wanted a larger location in the hub of our industry, and Kansas City is located in the heart a regional corridor with more than 70 animal health and petfood company headquarters. It's a perfect fit as we continue to expand our event."
From 2011 through 2014, Petfood Forum has been located at the Renaissance Schaumburg Convention Center Hotel in Schaumburg, Ill. Previous to 2011, the annual event was held at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare near Chicago. For more information on Petfood Forum 2015, and its new location in Kansas City, visit www.petfoodindustry.com/PetfoodForum2015.aspx.
Thailand lifted its state of emergency on March 19, 2014, as tensions cooled following weeks of anti-government protests. This is promising news for Bangkok and tradeshow season, particularly Petfood Forum Asia and FIAAP/Victam/GRAPAS Asia, which are being held in April.
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At the height of demonstrations, protesters shut down key road junctions in Bangkok and blockaded government ministries. Numbers have fallen in recent weeks, however, and the protesters are primarily occupying a city-center park, according to reports. Petfood Forum Asia 2014 will be held April 9 at the Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre in conjunction with FIAAP/Victam/GRAPAS Asia, being held April 8-10.
Urban Resource Institute (URI) and Nestlé Purina PetCare hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate New York City's first-ever dog park in a domestic violence shelter, called the Purina Play Haven and Dog Park. The event marks the official expansion of URIPALS-People and Animals Living Safely-which launched in June 2013 as a pilot program to enable domestic violence survivors to enter shelter with their cats and other small animals. With the opening of the Purina Play Haven and Dog Park, URI will now be able to open its doors to families with dogs.
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Sponsored by Purina, which contributed funds for the design and construction of the dog park, the Purina Play Haven and Dog Park will give families at URI's largest emergency shelter in New York City a safe and calming retreat in which to heal together. The unique dog park features a ramp, tunnel, bridge and platform for dogs to play and exercise, as well as overhead trellises to ensure the privacy and security of shelter residents.
"At Purina we share the belief that when pets and people are together, life is truly better," said Lindsey Hogan, brand manager for the Purina brand. "We're very proud to support the Urban Resource Institute and its PALS program, which is helping to keep families and pets together during difficult times."
Studies show that as many as 48% of domestic violence victims stay in abusive situations out of fear of what would happen if they left their pets behind, and more than 70% of pet owners who enter shelter report that the abuser has threatened, injured, or killed family pets. Among New York City's 50 domestic violence shelters, URI is the only one that accommodates pets.
The American Feed Industry Association hosted a record-setting Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference in Las Vegas, Nev., March 11-13, 2014. There were more than 625 industry representatives in attendance, up from 2013's 535 conference participants.
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The two-day conference represents one of the best opportunities to learn about the current state of the animal feed industry, providing market analyses, perspectives, hot topics and a host of other valuable tools and information, according to organizers. The 2014 topics focused on feeding the world's growing population by 2050, the importance of engaging in sustainable practices and biosecurity measures to protect feed ingredients, and also highlighted the timely issue of porcine epidemic diarrhea virus.
"AFIA is proud to offer a conference to industry representatives that not only provides an outlet for networking but provides attendees with up-to-date information on topics at the forefront of the agriculture industry," said AFIA President and CEO Joel G. Newman. "This year's attendance was not only record breaking, but conference goers were also an engaged crowd eager to learn more from the speakers and each other."
The event attracts livestock, feed and petfood purchasers and suppliers on an international level and offers informational and networking sessions as well as an annual golf tournament Friday, March 14. New to the agenda in 2014, the AFIA PISC Committee organized a clay shooting event following the conference. Attendees also enjoyed the annual Welcome Reception and Grand Reception, and new members attended an additional reception for networking.
The Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference has been approved for five continuing education units by the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists. The 2015 Spring Committee Meetings, Nutrition Symposium and Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference will be hosted March 9-13, 2015, in Orlando, Fla.
Kristen Levine, pet living expert, author and president of Fetching Communications and PetPR.com, has been selected to speak at the 2014 Petfood Workshop: Marketing to Today's Consumers, on Wednesday, April 2, at the Renaissance Schaumburg in Schaumburg, Ill. During Levine's breakout session, "Putting the BOOM in your Bottom Line: Building loyalty and engagement with the almighty boomer consumer," petfood marketers will learn what's important to boomers and how to target the fastest-growing segment of pet parents.
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"Baby boomers are the largest generational segment the US, controlling $2.5 trillion in spending power," said Levine. "Not only do these affluent empty nesters have time and disposable income to spend on their pets, they are also health-conscious and value diet and nutrition, and these characteristics are shared with their pet's care as well. I'm looking forward to teaching petfood marketers how to engage with this growing consumer segment at this year's workshop."
Immediately following Petfood Forum 2014, Petfood Workshop: Marketing to Today's Consumers will feature industry experts delivering information and insights on how to connect with today's ever more discerning pet owners. The two-day seminar will feature hands-on breakout sessions where attendees can learn about topics such as how pet owners shop, their perspectives on petfood, how to build trust and credibility with them, connecting with them through social media, balancing marketing with science and regulatory requirements, reaching emerging pet owner groups, and much more.
"The baby boomer generation is starting to pick up the pace in terms of pet ownership, and are a fast-growing demographic group that petfood marketers need to start reaching out to in dynamic and unique ways," said Jessica Taylor, managing editor of Petfood Industry. "Our audience would like to find out what's important to these pet owners and the best ways to reach them, so we're excited to have Kristen lead this discussion at this year's Workshop."
A new Thermo Fisher Scientific facility in Sunnyvale, Calif., is available to assist in addressing food, beverage and pharmaceutical manufacturers' safety and quality concerns.
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Product Assurance Services and Solutions (PASS) from Thermo Fisher offers rapid response for companies requiring off-site packaged product evaluation to address possible foreign object contamination concerns, according to the company. Additionally, the PASS facility can inspect products for processing anomalies (such as clumps), as well as broken or missing components (empty pharmaceutical blisters, partially-filled candy trays, etc.). "We are here to help customers get accurate and reliable results so that they are able to make informed decisions affecting the safety of the public," said Darren Eaton, global manager, PASS, Thermo Fisher. "By locating this facility in close proximity to this high production area, we help reduce the turnaround time and expense associated with urgent product contamination inspection issues."
The new Northern California facility is the company's third global PASS location. The other two facilities are located in Barrington, Ill. and Rugby, Warwickshire, England. In 2013, the PASS facilities collectively evaluated more than 8 million packages.
Shanghai-based pet products e-store Boqii has just completed a US$25 million series B funding round, according to reports. The investors have yet to be named.
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In 2008, Boqii was established as a retailer of petfoods and pet-related products. It had its own website, but was best knows for its outlets in Taobao, Tmall, Jingdong and other well-known Chinese e-commerce sites. The company has since added a wiki, social forums, group buying deals and directories, as well as developed an in-house brand of products.
Boqii has more than 3 million registered users. The newest funding will be used to ramp up marketing and branding, as well as moving into online-to-offline services.
