January 28, 2015
Thousands turn up at Day One of IPPE 2015 despite crippling snowstorm in US Northeast
By F.E. OLIMPO
Despite a massive snowstorm slamming into many parts of the US, including New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts, the world''s largest annual poultry, meat and feed industry exhibition went underway in Atlanta, Georgia, Tuesday, January 27.
With over 7,500 US flights cancelled in the wake of the blizzard, which weather forecasters described as "potentially historic" for its intensity and the amount of snow it threatened to dump, there was initial worry that attendance in this year''s three-day International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE) at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta won''t even approximate last year''s level.
Organisers had anticipated IPPE 2015 attendance to be over 25,000, up from last year''s 24,000, with exhibitors climbing to more than 1,200, from 1,152 a year ago.
But if the opening day was any indication, IPPE 2015 would be as much a success than 2014''s, which was in fact marred by weather-related problem.
While the sun was up the whole day of January 27 in Atlanta, it was not so during last year''s IPPE when blizzards at least for a day shut down the town, cancelled flights, shut down restaurants and prevented coffee kiosks at the exhibition centre from opening for the attendees.
As expected, people from many parts of the world showed up at Day One of IPPE 2015, which showcased the latest technology, equipment, supplies and services used in the production and processing of eggs, meat and poultry and those involved in feed manufacturing.
IPPE 2015 actually kicked off with the International Poultry Scientific Forum, held January 26-27. The forum, organised by the Southern Poultry Science Society, the Southern Conference on Avian Diseases and USPOULTRY, discussed industry-related issues like environmental management, nutrition, physiology, pathology, processing and products and avian diseases.
A key highlight of the three-day show is the Market Intelligence Forum, slated January 28. With top industry leaders as speakers, the forum seeks to identify key issues facing the poultry industry and provide understanding into how domestic and international poultry industries are positioned to move forward in 2015.
IPPE is a conglomerate of the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY), Tucker, Georgia; American Feed Industry Association (AFIA), Arlington, Virginia; and, the American Meat Institute (AMI), Washington, D.C.