CHICAGO—The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), a non-profit scientific society of food scientists, technologists and related professionals from academia, government and industry, today announced that registration for the IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo® in New Orleans, June 21-24 at the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, is now officially open.

The 2014 IFT Annual Meeting & Food Expo is the only global event of its kind to feature the very latest food products, the hottest food trends, and the most important developments in the science of food.  IFT's 2014 Scientific Program will address hot topics in food safety, product development, food health and nutrition, environmental sustainability and novel processing and packaging.

With more than 900 companies expected to exhibit, this event showcases the largest, most diverse collection of food ingredient, equipment, and packaging suppliers from all over the world. Over 100 educational sessions and 1,000 poster presentations will provide information on the latest developments and trends in food science.

In addition, this year marks an exciting milestone, as IFT celebrates its 75th Anniversary. This is a unique opportunity to recognize the historical impact of food science and technology, communicate the importance of the professions, and help others understand the critical role food science and technology will play in feeding a growing global population. IFT will be holding a special celebration called Diamonds & Donations at Generations Hall, Sunday June 22, at 9:00pm in New Orleans. Proceeds from this event will support the programs of Feeding Tomorrow, the Foundation of the Institute of Food Technologists.

IFT will also be celebrating both past and future contributions of food science through a new onsite Innovation Center, which will showcase the most important food science and technology achievements over the last 75 years. The Innovation Center will feature a presentation theater with sessions focused on emerging trends and scientific developments on the horizon, and much more.

Opening General Session: The Opening General Session keynote presentation will feature Doug Rauch, former president of Trader Joe's, on Sunday, June 22, from 8:30-10:15 a.m. Rauch, renowned for growing Trader Joe’s from a small, nine-store chain in Southern California to a nationally acclaimed retail success story with more than 340 stores in 30 states, will join us in New Orleans to share his thoughts about how to feed the world, one healthy, sustainably-sourced meal at a time.

Beacon Lecturers:

• Hod Lipson PhD, Professor of Engineering at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and co-author of the recent book Fabricated: The New World of 3D Printing, will describe the disruptive principles underlying 3D printing and their effect, from education to medicine to art to architecture, and from bio-printing to food printing, as well as what the future holds for this technology.
• Jane Karuku, President of AGRA, former Deputy Chief Executive and Secretary General Telkom Kenya, and former Managing Director for East and Central Africa for Cadbury, will speak about the challenges and potential solutions to the critical issue of global food security.

Please visit http://www.am-fe.ift.org/cms/?pid=1001037 to register.

If you are a member of the media and would like to attend, please contact Stephanie Callahan, IFT Media Relations Manager at scallahan@ift.org or Mindy Weinstein, Director of Media Relations at mweinstein@ift.org.

About IFT
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Institute of Food Technologists. Since its founding in 1939, IFT has been committed to advancing the science of food, both today and tomorrow. Our non-profit scientific society—more than 18,000 members from more than 100 countries—brings together food scientists, technologists and related professionals from academia, government and industry. For more information, please visit ift.org.