Gatherings for Greenhouse Vegetable Growers Go Virtual Thanks to COVID-19
April 2, 2020 
Greenhouse vegetable growers looking for ways to communicate with their peers on how COVID-19 is affecting their industry have a new resource. On Wednesday, March 25, the Produce Marketing Association (PMA) launched the first of what have become weekly virtual town halls. The town halls are designed to help industry members discuss challenges in real time, share learnings and opportunities, and explore where the industry needs to focus its efforts.
One of the topics from the first town hall focused on the scientific research into COVID-19 and the implications to the industry. PMA’s Science and Technology team is in frequent contact with expert virologists to understand and contextualize recent studies on COVID-19’s persistence on surfaces and what these early studies mean to the industry. Three new resources are now available:
- A video featuring PMA and virologists discussing the fact that food is safe and not a vehicle of COVID-19 transmission.
- A detailed digest of 11 regulatory documents from global health authorities and U.S. agencies so that employers deal with the consequences of an employee getting sick and ensure proper measures are in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace (including an 11-point breakroom poster for employees in food facilities and field labor).
- Insights on FDA inspections for exports and importers.
Growers are encouraged to continue visiting PMA’s COVID-19 website regularly to ensure they do not miss any of the updated information, tools, and resources.
United Fresh Moves Annual Convention Online
With the 2020 season ramping up for greenhouse vegetable growers and the produce supply chain — and the full impact of COVID-19 still unknown — the United Fresh Produce Association announced it will transition its in-person annual convention to a virtual event this summer.
United Fresh LIVE!, previously scheduled for San Diego, will be held entirely online, debuting the week of June 15, 2020. The event will be free to all attendees. The experience will be designed to maximize connections between customers and suppliers, ideally encouraging multiple participants from individual companies and virtual attendees from around the world who would have been unable to attend in person.
“During these past few weeks, we’ve all learned something about connections,” said Tom Stenzel, President and CEO of United Fresh. in a release announcing the event. “While we can’t wait to join with industry friends again in person, we’ve also realized that we’re connecting today in new ways. We’re all online, with video streaming, face-to-face chats, and group interactions that, just a month ago, we didn’t know how to do.”
Learn more in this story on GrowingProduce.com.
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