With a wealth of exhibitors and an extensive conference program, the largest trade show dedicated to food safety moves to Las Vegas.

FFrom starting as a small conference in 1999, the Food Safety Summit has become one of the premier events in the food industry. Covering food safety, quality assurance, and food security for food manufacturers, processors, chain restaurants, and retailers, this year’s expo will take place in the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV, from March 22-24.

The Food Safety Summit was acquired by Stagnito Communications in January. Stagnito is the publisher of the The NATIONAL PROVISIONER, MEAT & DELI RETAILER, and many other food-industry trade publications. Stagnito will work with Eaton Hall Exhibitions, the show’s former owner, to coordinate the 2006 Summit.

The Food Safety Summit has grown in size every year since its inception. In 2003, it was named one of the 50 fastest-growing trade shows in the United States by Tradeshow Week Magazine. Attendance for the 2005 Summit was up by 18 percent over 2004. The move to Las Vegas should spur further growth, with an estimated 2,200 qualified attendees expected to visit the show.

The 2006 Food Safety Summit also will get hundreds of new attendees, as the show will be sharing the exhibit floor with SNAXPO®, the world’s largest expo for the snack food industry, sponsored by the Snack Food Association. Both shows will run simultaneously on March 22, and attendees of both shows will have the opportunity to visit the two expos with one badge.

The Summit’s sessions focus on practical, applied information that can be put to use in a facility immediately. Topics will include technology for food safety, pathogen control, dealing with USDA and FDA regulations, managing a recall, tracking and tracing ingredients and products, and sessions on Listeria, E. coli, and BSE. Sessions include “Facility Design for Foodservice Safety,” “Advanced HACCP: How to Keep Your Plan Current and Relevant,” and “Formulating for Food Safety: Why Your Recipe is Really a Process Control Document.”

On Friday, March 24, there will be three two-hour workshops devoted to key safety issues. The workshops, “Becoming the ‘Million Dollar’ QA Manager,” “Food Security: A Live Exercise Drill,” and “Responding to a Crisis: Product Recall Workshop,” will offer working lunches to attendees.

Many of the speakers work in the food industry and deal with those issues every day. Government regulators and leading industry experts also will offer their perspectives in sessions. Keynote addresses will be delivered by Dr. David Acheson, director of food safety & secutiry, FDA CFSAN, and Temple Grandin, Ph.D., author of Animals in Translation. Dr. Richard Raymond, under secretary for food safety, USDA, also has been invited to speak.

The exhibit floor includes more than 250 booths of the latest and most useful products for producing quality food. This is the largest exhibition of food safety products and services in the world. Everything from testing and measurement to advanced technologies is on display. Other products, such as plant sanitation, rapid test methods, pest control, uniform services, and cleaning chemicals also will be displayed. Show specials, new product introductions, live demonstrations, and networking are just a few of the activities that will take place on the show floor.

Food processors, foodservice professionals, and retailers can visit the Food Safety Summit exhibit floor free of charge if they register by February 15. Industry suppliers pay $100 for expo-only admission. Hall admission plus a single sessions costs $175. One-day, two-day, or three-day packages, which include floor attendance, all conference activities, and meals, range from $450 to $850.