Petfood Forum 2020, originally scheduled for April 27-29, will now take place August 19-21. The location is still the Kansas City Convention Center in Kansas City, Missouri, USA. The rescheduling happened due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic out of an abundance of caution and concern for the safety and well-being of all participants, organizers said.
New research and insights from pet food experts
Most of the session topics and speakers, as well as other conference features previously announced, will remain, including the opening keynote by Bonin Bough, host of “The Cleveland Hustles” on CNBC and former c-suite executive at human food companies Mondelez International and PepsiCo. His message on “hackonomy is aimed at helping pet food businesses reach the next level in a highly competitive industry that is also significantly influenced by human food and health, pet health and similar fields.*
Concurrent sessions will offer information and insights on specific innovations and growing trends, including new nutrition and ingredient research and new technologies. In addition, three roundtables will address hot topics like the role of sustainability in pet food, the CBD craze in the pet industry and the microbiome’s importance to pet nutrition and health. Another roundtable session will address the need for new models to close the gaps in pet food nutrition research.
In addition, general sessions will cover emerging trends and an update of the pet food market, plus how and why pet owners are changing their pet food purchasing choices. Petfood Forum 2020 will also feature research presented by students from companion animal academic programs, plus Pet Food Tech Talks from leading industry suppliers showcasing their latest products and technologies.
Leading pet food industry exhibit hall
This year’s Petfood Forum exhibit hall will be the show’s largest ever, comprising more than 500 booths and over 300 suppliers of pet food ingredients, equipment, packaging materials, testing services and more.
Participants in Petfood Forum will find many opportunities to network with other pet food professionals from around the world. New activities include a game show on the exhibit floor, in addition to several meals, coffee breaks and receptions.
Petfood Forum 2020 registration and other updates
Please visit www.PetfoodForumEvents.com.
*NOTE: This information has been updated to include that Bonin Bough will still be delivering the opening keynote for Petfood Forum 2020.
Petfood Essentials provides fundamentals on production, safety
Petfood Essentials: Production and Safety A to Z will take place on Wednesday, August 19, at the Kansas City Convention Center, before the Petfood Forum opening reception. This new event offers a foundation of information on two of the most important areas of pet food manufacturing. Led by industry experts, participants will rotate through six sessions offering fundamental learnings and insights on the key elements of the dry pet food production process, including ingredient selection and sourcing, batching/mixing/grinding/milling, preconditioning/extrusion, coating/cooling/drying, packaging and quality/safety/testing.
Petfood Essentials will also offer networking with industry sponsors as well as other pet food professionals during meals, coffee breaks and a mixer. For more information, visit https://bit.ly/396yUiI.
