Still Time to Register for USMEF Market Expo to Tokyo and Shanghai

Space is still available on the annual USMEF Market Expo – this year’s featured destinations are Tokyo and Shanghai. Registration is on a first-come, first-reserved basis, and participation is limited to the first 15 registrants. Payment must accompany registration forms and no places may be held without it.

Market Expo is carefully crafted to show team members how their checkoff dollars are invested and to give them an understanding of USMEF’s marketing programs and strategies to increase red meat exports. The 2015 USMEF Market Expo will take place March 1-7.

Shanghai, China’s booming industrial city, and Tokyo, Japan’s capital, are the diverse settings for this information-packed visit. Participants will meet with importers and meat processors and tour retail stores, restaurants and processing facilities as they experience firsthand the business climate and culture of China and Japan.

China has a voracious appetite for pork, with daily consumption averaging 1.9 million hogs, and the growing middle class has greater spending power for higher quality items like chilled beef. Chinese supermarkets are featuring more chilled and western-style meat, pre-packaged and processed. More than 17 countries are vying for market share in China, and emerging high-end retail chains are building brand awareness.

The Tokyo stop will include a visit to FOODEX, Asia’s largest food exhibition, which is always a memorable highlight and educational experience for participants. Click on the picture for a video of producer observations from the last Market Expo visit to FOODEX, in 2011.

In addition to the scheduled visits, participants will have time to gain insight into these vibrant cultures through visits to landmarks and opportunities to sample local cuisine.

Consult the online brochure and registration form for more details. Questions? Email Jackie Boubin or call her at (303) 623-6328.