WASHINGTON -- The Food Marketing Institute here is launching a new show, called "MealSolutions," that focuses on fresh prepared, value-added foods.
MealSolutions will debut in Phoenix Sept. 8 to 10, 1996, at the Phoenix Convention Center, and FMI has indicated that it will be an annual event.
"This is what our industry members are telling us they want," said Karen Brown, senior vice president for FMI. Brown said the show is not specific to any one fresh foods category, such as meat or deli. "We're not looking at it as 'product categories,' " Brown said. "We're looking at 'how to display a meal product.' It's a really different kind of concept on how to merchandise product in-store," she said.
"With 47% of the total U.S. food dollar spent on food-away-from-home, the need for an annual show that focuses on the supermarket as the source of meal solutions for today's time-pressed consumers is overwhelming," read an FMI statement.
MealSolutions will combine exhibits and educational workshops, according to FMI. Brown said the new show will not compete with conferences that FMI co-sponsors. However, in a separate interview, Tim Hammonds, FMI president, said three FMI events will be collapsed into the MealSolutions show: the Seafood, Food Protection and Foodservice conferences.
