Europa: Europatats Main Theme for 2016n,Adapting Business to Change and Uncertainty

The Europatat congress is organized once per year in different European locations, as past editions show: from Dusseldorf to Karlovy Vary, from The Hague to Taormina. Considering the umbrella theme for this year’s event, “Not Business as Ususal”, Brussels seems an obvious venue choice, from many perspectives concerning the potato players. In their own words, the organizers say: “In order to create a meeting for all potato professionals on the edge of a new potato season, Europatat organizes its Congress every year in a different European location. This rotation enables all potato traders to host the congress in their country, which allows them to present the activities of Europatat to their national potato chain and authorities. On the other hand all countries have the opportunity to present their national sector and to focus on their items of interest during the Congress’ workshop.”

This year’s Europatat event will be co-organized together with Freshfel, the European Fresh Produce Association, a forum for the fresh vegetables and fruit supply chain and Europe and beyond. Its members are associations and companies that have an interest in the European fresh fruit and vegetable sector, including production, trade, logistics and retailing.

“Europatat is excited to organize the 2016 Congress in collaboration with the fresh produce sector. We will bring together industry leaders of these two major agriculture sectors in Europe to explore tips & strategies for a successful bright future,” says Raquel Izquierdo de Santiago (Europatat).

Adapting to challenging situations

The congress program will include topics that are relevant to today’s potato industry, on the background of the unpredictable evolution of markets and consumer expectations. Besides a keynote speech from the EU Commission, attendees will learn how Europe responds to sustainable development across the food chain, what the predictions and possibilities are for the potato industry, presented by a leading futurologist, as well as what the main challenges are for the potato sector in 2016. Moreover, in the speeches and presentations, the speakers will try to showcase tailored solutions for the potato sector, in conjunction with Trade Policies for 2016-2017, in light of current changes.

Other presentations will include the European response to changing markets and the priorities in Agricultural Policies for 2016-2017, as well as a special focus on technology and innovation with a topic named “The tech industry is overtaking the food industry: A future model for the sector?” Furthermore, participants will have the chance to learn new tips on how to build a successful online food business, as well as what’s hot in 2016 – Industry 4.0.