11/04/05 PMA - Big deals for fruits

It's billed as the world's largest event for fresh fruit and vegetable producers. And there is no argument if you look at the numbers of the Produce Marketing Association convention. This year marks the thirtieth annual convention. And at rough estimate over 17,000 people from seventy nations will be in attendance at the conference in Atlanta starting today through November 8th. And while the seminars and programs with noted speakers such as shopping guru Phil Lempert and "Dilbert" creator Scott Adams are highlights, the main action is the deal. Just ask B.J. Thurlby of Northwest Cherries. THURLBY: It's a political lynchpin in that we attend it and that the players in our industry attend it, because we're doing business with the producer marketer  retail trade out there. So you'll have people there from Wal-Mart. You'll have people there from Safeway. You'll have people there from just about every groceries chain in America, but you'll have everybody in between. You'll have a tremendous amount of wholesalers. And as Pear Bureau Northwest's Kevin Moffitt alludes to, it's not just the domestic side of things that are happening, as this is the one time of year many international produce industry players are in the same facility. MOFFITT: For us in the produce industry, this is an excellent opportunity for us to see our customers face to face. We'll see retailers from all over the U.S. and Canada. But we'll see some of our export country customers as well, everywhere from India, Russia, Mexico, and Asia, as well as Europe.