Annual Meat Conference To Feature Tech Fair And Product Tasting Reception March 10, 2008, in Nashville

Washington, D.C. — The ever popular Product Tasting Reception and Tech Fair Luncheon showcasing meat and poultry products and technologies will be featured at the 2008 Annual Meat Conference, March 9-11, 2008, at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center, Nashville, Tennessee.

The Tech Fair will be held Monday, March 10, from 10:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with dedicated time for exhibits only from 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. A luncheon will follow. After the meal, attendees can visit booths displaying the latest products and services, including equipment, packaging, labeling and ingredient technology located in the perimeter of the convention center. More than 30 exhibits were featured at last year’s luncheon.

The Product Tasting Reception is slated for Monday, March 10, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. and will showcase some of the most innovative and new meat and poultry products in the retail market. In past years, more than 40 companies have served their products to the retail community in a “feast of food tastes.”

Suppliers interested in exhibiting at either event should contact AMI’s manager of convention and member services, Eric Zito, at 202-587-4223 or via email at ezito@meatami.com.

Co-sponsored by the American Meat Institute (AMI) and the Food Marketing Institute (FMI), the Annual Meat Conference each year attracts 700 members of the retail food and meat industries. It is considered the leading educational event focusing on meat and poultry marketing developments, merchandising issues and consumer purchasing trends.

Associate sponsors for the conference include the American Lamb Board, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, the National Chicken Council & U.S Poultry and Egg Association, the National Pork Board and the National Turkey Federation.

Advance registration for the conference is $595 per person or $545 for three or more members of the sponsoring associations. On-site registration is $695 per person or $645 for three or more members registering together or $515 when 10 or more retailers/wholesalers register together. Nonmember registration is $1,290 per person.

The complete conference program, as well as a registration form, may be accessed by logging onto at http://www.MeatConference.com.
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AMI represents the interests of packers and processors of beef, pork, lamb, veal and turkey products and their suppliers throughout North America. Together, AMI's members produce 95 percent of the beef, pork, lamb and veal products and 70 percent of the turkey products in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the Institute provides legislative, regulatory, public relations, technical, scientific and educational services to the industry. Its affiliate, the AMI Foundation, is a separate 501(c)3 organization that conducts research, education and information projects for the industry.

Food Marketing Institute (FMI) conducts programs in research, education, industry relations and public affairs on behalf of its 1,500 member companies — food retailers and wholesalers — in the United States and around the world. FMI’s U.S. members operate approximately 26,000 retail food stores with a combined annual sales volume of $680 billion — three-quarters of all retail food store sales in the United States. FMI’s retail membership is composed of large multi-store chains, regional firms and independent supermarkets. Its international membership includes 200 companies from more than 50 countries.