Food Marketing Institute (FMI) announced its three premier sessions at FMI Connect featuring noted experts in consumer trends, flavor, culinary technique, dining experiences and the practical artistry of home cooking. FMI Connect will host these business and food trend-spotters, both on stage and in more intimate learning environments, at the food retailing industry’s principal event, June 20-23 in Chicago.

Steve Case, chairman and CEO of Revolution LLC, and one of the United States’ most accomplished entrepreneurs – who made the Internet part of everyday life and orchestrated the largest merger in the history of business — will share a road-map for how anyone can succeed in a world of rapidly changing technology. Thematically aligned with his new book, the Third Wave, launching in April 2016, Case’s June 21 keynote will explore the intersection between food retail and technology and their increased relevance for food retailers.

Technology is enabling a faster-paced food retail environment, and the industry need for awareness of shoppers’ experiences has taken on new levels of importance – revolutionizing supermarket communications and merchandising channels. To help address these emerging industry needs, FMI Connect will be grounded in the latest trends, business intelligence, data and best practices.

FMI president and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin will lead two sessions concentrating on food and foodservice trends. On June 22, she will present findings from FMI’s U.S. Grocery Shopper Trends 2016, guiding FMI Connect participants on a fact-filled journey into the thoughts, feelings and behaviors of today’s consumer in the quest for food. Complementing Sarasin’s consumer trend analysis, a separate session will feature her soliciting the thoughts of Mario Batali and Robert Irvine, successful restaurateurs recognizable from the Food Network, regarding their predictions for the future of the marketplace and consumer. This discussion, Riding the Wave of Food Trends, will inform food marketing strategies; store design; product assortment; and insights into communicating corporate values. Both Batali and Irvine will also have additional activities within the FMI Expo following the session.

Source: FMI