The Inaugural Global Shrimp Forum, which will take place in Utrecht between September 6-8 has confirmed its detailed conference programme and announced the first 50 speakers. Another 50 speakers will be announced over the next couple of weeks. For the first time ever, the event will bring together the global business’ senior leaders, to address the most important questions facing the shrimp industry worldwide.
The event will kick-start with a plenary opening, chaired by Chris Ninnes, the CEO of the ASC and Chairman of the GSF Foundation, which will set the stage for what the two-day event has in store.
The opening will also feature a range of keynote speakers, such as Walter Faaij of Green Culture Lab, who will share their perspectives on how the shrimp industry can help solve the world’s largest challenges.
The programme for the event consists of nine in-depth half-day seminars, chaired by multiple contributors, including Amy Novogratz, co-founder of Aqua-Spark, Guus Pastor, President of the Dutch Fish Federation, and from Asia, Ronnie Tan, the aquaculture lead of the US Grains Council. The seminars will cover a variety of different topics, ranging from Feed and Genetics to Finance and Investment.
Another key seminar topic up for discussion is Market and Retail Outlook. The session will be chaired by Gerhard Zurlutter, who until very recently was the international seafood buyer for Coop supermarkets. The seminar will delve into the various pressure points impacting shrimp trade and production and explore how macro-economic and retail trends are impacting shrimp consumption patterns. It will zoom into the topic by having global retailers and brands discuss their current and future expectations for sourcing shrimp and hear about innovative initiatives taken in the industry to be ahead of the game in meeting market expectations. The seminar will feature key speakers throughout, including Ragnar Nystøyl from Kontali Analyse.
In addition, the Shrimp Production Review and Outlook seminar will explore the ambitions of the five largest L. vannamei shrimp producing countries and how each of these major producers differ from one to another. It will present the latest production data of the major shrimp producers, the drivers of growth and consider each country’s export performance. The speakers and panellists will include Ravi Kumar Yellanki of Vaisakhi Bio-Marine for India, Olivier DeCamp of Grobest for Vietnam, a representative of Japfa for Indonesia, and Gabriel Luna of Luna Shrimp for Ecuador. They will also provide an overview of what’s to expect in the short- term and longer-term future. The seminar will be chaired by Travis Larkin, president of Seafood Exchange.
The event has also been backed by over 30 sponsors from across the shrimp sector, including Santa Priscilla from Ecuador, Thai Union from Thailand, Minh Phu from Vietnam, JAPFA from Indonesia, Sandhya Aqua from India, and Klaas Puul from the Netherlands. GSF is set to be an event packed with crucial insights that will take its place as an essential fixture in the seafood calendar. Tickets are available through the Global Shrimp Forum website.
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