By the time you read this, the UK electorate will have decided on a new government. It’s been a close-run campaign - too close to call - and I am really looking forward to Iain Dale’s take on the whole performance at our Re:fresh Conference next Thursday. Having ruffled a few Westminster feathers from time to time, I am pretty sure he will have one or two controversial comments, as well as advising of the potential impact on our industry.

If you have not booked your place at the conference there is still time and don’t forget the BOGOF deal - £259 for two is an excellent conference rate, so come to the Intercontinental Park Lane, meet old friends and make new ones, and join in the debate!

It has been a busy month at the FPC with several issues surfacing at once, including problems with Indian grapes and the bizarre Icelandic volcanic ash, which affected many of you and your businesses. Thankfully, airports were declared operational again in good time for us to take a team of members to Morocco, courtesy of Maroc Export, to meet with ministers and attend SIAM 2010, which is a seriously impressive agricultural trade fair in Meknes. Our delegation included representation from Univeg Katope, Suncrop, Greencell, Worldwide Fruit, Ferryfast and Chingford Fruit - a great combination of expertise and character, which engaged in interesting discussion with minister of foreign trade Abdellatif Mazouz, and later with minister for agriculture Aziz Akhennouch. This vibrant country produces excellent fresh produce of the highest quality and is looking to increase its export capacity, especially to the UK. My thanks to the embassy in London for hosting us on this trip and providing the schedule, enabling us to meet exporters.

We are delighted that Morocco is the guest nation of the 2011 FPC Annual Dinner and this was a great opportunity to further understand the culture and sample fabulous traditional cuisine.

The judging of the Re:fresh Awards took place earlier this month and, as chairman of the panel, I would like to thank my judges for their time and commitment to this extensive but very rewarding task. My thanks also to the entrants - we were overwhelmed with the number of awards entries - greater than any year to date - and the standard just gets higher, which just goes to show the esteem by which these awards are held. Well done to all the finalists - sadly, there can only be one winner per award, so if you were not successful this year, make sure you have another go next year - 2011 could be good for you!

We look forward to seeing as many of you as possible next Thursday at Re:fresh - do come and say hi to the team!

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