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The National Coffee Association of U.S.A. Information
The National Coffee Association of U.S.A., Inc. (NCA) will hold its 96th Annual Convention on March 1-4, 2007 at The Phoenician in Scottsdale, Ariz. Entitled Coffee On The Move: Forging New Profiles, the convention will put special emphasis on a category being redefined by changing consumer expectations and product variety.
"Coffee is no longer a single beverage, but a menu of options sought by consumers," said Robert F. Nelson, NCA president and CEO. "Coffee is experiencing a new Renaissance as consumers look to a wide variety of coffees to fill different roles, satisfy new tastes and fit new behaviors."
The Convention will focus on coffee's many new profiles in a rapidly changing industry. The meeting, with extensive educational and networking opportunities, is targeted to helping industry executives, new and old, understand the changing dynamics of the expanding category.
Educational sessions will focus on keeping pace with change and understanding how to maximize its opportunities. The annual business luncheon will feature Michael O'Donovan, Dunkin' Brands vice president of global research and development and a trained chef, speaking on the expanding role of coffee in the culinary arts. As ingredient and food complement, coffee is becoming an important part of gourmet cuisine, and O'Donovan will share some of Dunkin' Brands' groundbreaking research in the area.
Among other educational sessions, Eric Nadelberg of Prudential Financial Derivatives will explain how to adapt to financial uncertainties in the changing coffee trade. Jim Block of DTN will describe potential implications of Global Warming on the coffee industry.
Changing consumer tastes are also addressed in breakout sessions that delve deeply into specialized topics. Among them, Sherri Johns of WholeCup Coffee will conduct a session on how to host a barista competition. Karl Schmidt of Probat Burns will discuss the science of coffee profiling. Luis Fernando Samper of the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia will lead a case study on how his organization revitalized its Juan Valdez brand.
In a special series of breakfast roundtables, attendees will join colleagues from every sector of the industry to discuss topics of current importance. Over breakfast, participants take an active part in a facilitated discussion on their selected topics. This year's topics are: the benefit and challenge of adapting to consumer demand for gourmet/specialty coffee; taking your brand global -- the trends, challenges, and rewards; and making innovation a permanent part of your company's business model.
The meeting will also offer attendees an exclusive, sneak preview of the 2007 National Coffee Drinking Trends. The top-line results from the nationwide survey, fresh from the field, will be previewed for convention attendees alone. The 2007 survey introduces several enhancements aimed at understanding changing consumer tastes and behaviors, including new questions on origin recognition and flavored coffees.
This year's Official Convention Host is the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNC) on the occasion of its 80th anniversary. Over the years, the Federation promoted the development of a sustainable coffee economy, with revenues from the sale of Colombian coffee going back to the farmers, their families and communities. The Federation is entirely owned by more than 566,000 Colombian coffee growers, 95% of them small scale farmers.
FNC also encourages top-quality coffee production and helps stimulate economic and social development. Its social programs have helped improve the standard of living for more than 2 million people in rural Colombian growing regions. Throughout the years, the Federation has developed thousands of miles of access roads, a safe and adequate water supply, schools, electrification, housing, health centers and a number of coffee processing facilities.
For the third year running, NCA will also hold a Table-Top Exhibition at the Convention. The exhibition is a prime venue for any company marketing a product or service to the coffee industry.
The table-top exhibits are designed to give attendees unique benefits, including:
* One-on-one access to over 300 coffee executives * Increased visibility for each exhibitor with a limited number of table-tops * An intimate setting allowing for greater rapport-building opportunities * Exhibits outside meeting rooms, guaranteeing frequent traffic by all attendees * A cost-effective way to reach a targeted coffee audience www.amonline.com
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