Potato Expo last week announced The Eye, a live streaming network covering activities taking place at Potato Expo 2018. The Eye reporters will cover the excitement from the show floor in addition to in-depth interviews at The Eye booth, No. 636. All interviews, as well as highlights from the third annual Spud Nation Throwdown Cook-off and featured sessions in the new Potato Expo Innovation Hub, will live-stream throughout the convention on Facebook Live and YouTube.
“The Eye will provide a full 360-degree view of the trade show, making it more informative, interesting and fun,” says Jim Tiede, co-chair of Potato Expo 2018. “It’s truly must-see TV for the potato industry.”
Celebrating its 10th year, Potato Expo 2018 is expected to be the largest in its history, drawing more than 2,000 attendees and over 180 exhibiting companies. Potato Expo takes place Jan. 10-12, 2018, at the Rosen Shingle Creek in Orlando, Fla.
Potato Expo has also announced that the expo’s Innovation Hub will include voted-on presentations encompassing all aspects of the potato industry. Located on the trade show floor, the Potato Expo Innovation Hub will be the center of the event’s education programming and will include presentations, panel discussions, research findings, and potatoes as the star of the food world. Members of the Potato Expo community are invited to vote on the topics they find most interesting. Voting is open through Sept. 27. Session options include a variety of educational topics such as production, research, consumer trends, food safety, globalization, foodservice, labor, and use of marketing and social media to network, increase sales and more.
“We really want those in attendance to get the most out of their experience, so their vote will help program their ideal show,” says Tiede.
The Potato Expo Innovation Hub “Main Stage” will feature 12 events over two and a half days. In addition, there will be nearly 20 breakout sessions taking place in other locations. After the votes are tallied, the Innovation Hub schedule will be announced Oct. 5.
In addition, the 2018 Spud Nation Throwdown Cook-off takes on a new twist: 100 percent impartiality. In its third annual year, test kitchen culinarians from the biggest brands who market potatoes or use potatoes in their ingredients will don their chef hats and head to the stage, where they will prepare their most innovative dishes. Hosted by Phil Lempert, the Supermarket Guru, the Spud Nation Throwdown judging panel will taste each chef’s creation blindfolded to offer their objective reviews. The Throwdown takes place over two days, with two finalists competing one-on-one to turn mystery ingredients left for them on the stage into a Spud Nation winning dish.
For more information, visit www.potato-expo.com