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.
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.
