Say Hello to the Future – this is the focus of this year’s Fresh Summit. The trade show floor at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans, LA will be open in exactly one month. So, how will you see this tagline present at the show? Fresh Summit brings together the leaders in the world of fresh produce to conduct business and examine the trends and topics that are of mutual interest. Now more than ever, it is becoming critical to look towards the future for new trends, marketing techniques, technologies, and regulatory shifts that are going to change the competitive landscape. So, the objective of this year’s fresh summit is to answer the question of how to we prepare for tomorrow?

Here’s 4 interesting ways that the industry is preparing:

• RoboBees – yes, that’s right. Mechanical bees that are being used to pollinate crops to combat the disappearance of many colonies.

• Ordering your groceries while waiting for the subway – yes, this will be a reality, by using interactive life-size screens to place grocery orders for in-store pickup or home delivery. In our ever busying lives, this will become a great timesaver for those on the go. Check out this youtube video to see how this innovation is already at work in Korea.

• 3-Dimensional Printing of Food for Space Missions – this will be a way to keep tomorrow’s astronauts healthy, by injecting vitamins and minerals into their food made is space with a 3D printer. Check out NASA’s site for info on this innovation!

• Farmscraping – Farms meet city. The future will see more and more local produce being grown in cityscapes – on the sides of buildings or in skyscraper greenhouses – to prepare for the estimation that by 2050, close to 80% of the world’s population will live in urban areas.

Innovation is clearly at work and prevalent in this industry. Fresh summit brings the people, the place, and the ideas all together so that industry professionals can have relevant and meaningful conversations, and create connections that will last long after the show floor closes. UWT will be present at booth #446 – don’t forget to stop by and chat with us on how we are working to offer improved productivity, cost savings, and peace of mind.

We will also be live tweeting any interesting info right from the show, using #freshsummit!