Advocacy, innovation, climate and community are among the themes from Cathy Burns’ State of the Industry Address at the IFPA Global Produce & Floral Show
In her annual State of the Industry Address at the Global Produce & Floral Show in Atlanta, IFPA chief executive Cathy Burns highlighted the impact that fresh produce has on people, plates and the planet.
Burns used the keynote to recap various advocacy victories in 2024 and unveil a new policymaker-oriented campaign focused on the reality that IFPA and its global members ’Fight for Fresh’.
“While it’s challenging to maintain connection today whether watching TV or scrolling social media, the reality no matter where your space is along the produce and floral supply chain, your place is always here at our table,” Burns said, in a nod to the 2024 IFPA Global Produce & Floral Show’s theme of ’You Belong Here’.
A year ago, Burns called on members and those in the global produce and floral community to get more involved in advocating on industry issues and public policy.
Community response resulted in the saving of the fresh fruit and vegetable benefit in the WIC program (a US$1bn opportunity for fresh produce) among others, all of which demonstrated the power of togetherness and has reinforced IFPA’s already strong position in public policy circles.
“It’s the ‘together’ that makes advocacy work.” she observed. “As we see how interconnected and portable policy can be between regions, we stand ready to amplify our voices to create meaningful change.”
Burns discussed the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on the industry, the danger that climate change presented to the sector, workplace dynamics and the global health crisis, among other key topics.
Fight for Fresh
Citing the advocacy outreach and outcomes that will flow from the more than 70 global elections held in 2024, Burns revealed the elements of policymaker-oriented campaign under the banner Fight for Fresh.
“We need to be ready to respond when our community’s outcomes will require us to be ready to respond, when our importance and relevance to the world is questioned, challenged, or worse, disregarded,” she said.
Burns clarified that Fight for Fresh was not a consumer campaign, but rather an intentional effort to break through the noise and grab the attention of lawmakers and regulators when the moment was right.
An early example of this was the WIC campaign in early 2024 that saved the fresh produce benefit; another was the quarter-full produce gift boxes lawmakers received during the June 2024 Washington Conference, which drove home the point that without farm labour reform, this is what future production will yield
Yet another was the lawsuit IFPA and other leading agricultiural organisations filed against the US Department of Labor that legally challenged the department’s most recent H-2A rule in federal court on the belief it was unnecessary, unlawful, outside the agency’s scope, and overly burdensome to agricultural employers.
“The size and scope of the global fresh produce and floral community alone gives us immense influence. It’s time we fully tap into that,” Burns remarked.
“At the end of the day, when we come together as a community united by voice and purpose, we don’t just create a profound sense of belonging; we ignite a powerful force of togetherness.
”We do not go into advocacy lightly,” she added. ”Fresh produce and floral is absolutely, undoubtedly, 100 per cent worth fighting for.”
