With the madness of Christmas firmly behind us we crack on into the New Year with renewed vigour, and we have great plans ahead for FPC. We all know the credibility of statistics and surveys is questionable and information can be manipulated to achieve and present a certain message, however, that said we issued a short survey to members just before Christmas and asked what they thought of us – a brave but necessary exercise if we are to improve our services.

The response was amazing, not just the sheer volume which was impressive, but the results were overwhelmingly positive and provided confirmation that we are definitely on the right track and heading in the right direction. Plans are afoot to increase our services in the coming months, including the major development of a brand new website which will take some time because we want to deliver a state-of-the-art interactive site, so watch this space. We will be asking you for ideas and suggestions to make sure we cover all the bases.

We were very sorry to hear of the demise of Paul Kershaw, who died on Christmas Eve. Bradford St James Wholesale Market is a longstanding valued FPC member and Paul was a lifelong supporter of our association. Paul was a great family man and his legacy lives on in his sons and grandsons, who continue the passion for the industry with successful businesses Burbank and Delifresh at the heart of this thriving market.

Saturday 2 February is looming and we are working closely with our friends from the Dominican Republic and the Savoy to deliver another outstanding event. Congratulations to our UK sponsor Rob Frost and the team at Anglia on the success of their recent management buyout – we look forward to raising a glass with them. In addition to the evening event, this year we are also organising a lunch forum included in the ticket price, to be held in the iconic River Room, and will be an excellent networking opportunity. Headline UK speakers include Andy Garton from Morrisons, Nigel Harris from Fresh Direct, Noel Kershaw from Delifresh, Justin Szymborski from Fesa and Jan Lloyd from New Covent Garden Wholesale Market Authority, providing a short, meaningful perspective of their sector with the usual passion and vigour. Ambassador Dr Federico Cuello will lead the Dominican delegation with major sponsors from the DR Exporters Association and British Chamber of Commerce. We expect this new initiative to create new friendships and ultimately provide trade opportunities across the industry prior to the celebrations in the evening. This is a great opportunity and if you haven’t already registered you can contact Angie at the office for more information.

We will be out and about again in 2013, visiting as many of you as possible to discuss the challenges and opportunities that are important to you and don’t forget, you can always pop in for coffee when you’re navigating the A1 – we’d love to see you. —