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The MWFPA News Bulletin is underwritten in part by Bug Blocker Doors & Screens
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GMO Labeling Bill Signed Into Law
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 President Obama signed the landmark GMO labeling compromise bill into law last Friday. MWFPA, along with partners across the value chain, had pushed for a solution to this issue for more than two years as a member of the Coalition for Safe Affordable Food.
The signing came just about two weeks after Congress passed legislation to necessitate labeling on all food packages that indicates whether or not they contain GMO ingredients. The law will pre-empt Vermont's law that became effective July 1.
Read MWFPA's statement regarding the signing here.
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YOUR BANNER HERE
By becoming an underwriter of the MWFPA News Bulletin, your banner will be viewed by a very targeted group of food processors, in addition to persons, firms and corporations that provide technology, logistics, ingredients and packaging to the food processing industry.
Contact [email protected], or call (608) 255-9946, ext. 11.
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WI Legislator Ask Gov To Consider Ways To Raise Highway Revenues
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The co-chairman of the WI Legislature's powerful budget-writing committee has called on Gov. Scott Walker to consider finding ways to raise revenue for the state's transportation budget which will suffer from a $939 million shortfall in the next biennium, according to the latest estimates.
State Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette), issued a call for an open dialogue on finding and approving a sustainable solution to maintaining the state's infrastructure. He cited numbers from the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau showing Wisconsin needing to recover more than $939 million just to maintain what was approved last budget.
Nygren said he was "willing to consider all options, whether that be a gas tax or registration. My preference would be a gas tax because that's something that people visiting our state would pay, whereas the registration would simply be on the state of Wisconsin."
Gov. Walker has consistently said that he is opposed to raising the gas tax without a corresponding decrease elsewhere in the budget.
Some advocates for increasing the gas tax charge that increased fuel efficiency has led to a reduction in revenue compared to overall highway use. But
according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau data, total fuel sales in Wisconsin have increased 3.79% from fiscal year 2013-2014 to fiscal year 2016-2017.
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MN Special Session Session Still Elusive
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In the last MWFPA News Bulletin, it was reported that MN Gov. Mark Dayton and legislative leaders were close to a deal on a special session that could resurrect a $1 billion public construc- tion package and a $260 million tax relief bill.
Since then there has been a lack of progress on a special session agreement with Dayton saying they need to nail down details soon or risk losing their window for approving the tax cuts, construction package and a few other items unresolved during their legislative session.
Dayton intended to call a meeting this week with legislative leaders to gauge progress since their last face-to-face talks in mid-July. At that meeting negotiators said they would leave it up to working groups to sort through details on issues that would arise in a special session. No public meetings of those panels have occurred.
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MWFPA Convention First Round Booth Lottery Ends
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The MWFPA 2016 Convention booth lottery has come to an end!
There are still booths to be reserved on a first come, first serve basis for the convention and trade show being held at the Kalahari Resort and Convention Center in Wisconsin Dells, WI November 29 - December 1, 2016.
Increase your sales. Guarantee your booth space with prime spots remaining, but they will go fast!
Go the
MWFPA Convention website and download a copy of the convention prospectus which contains a floor map and registration form or click on the image at right. Registration forms can be submitted via email, fax or mail. Sorry, no online registration is available at this time.
The MWFPA Convention and Trade Show is our premier event bringing together leaders in the food processing industry to discuss trends, view new technologies, share expertise, and network with professionals in different companies and disciplines.
If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact Brian Deschane at: [email protected] or call 608-255-9946.
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MWFPA Hosts Management Training Program With Cheesemakers, UW School of Business
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 In partnership with the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association and the Wisconsin School of Business Certificate Program, the Midwest Food Processors Association is again promoting a custom certificate program designed to build leadership, management, and business acumen in dairy and food industry professionals.
High Performance Leadership and Management Skills for Food and Cheese Professionals provides the skills to lead, motivate, and manage employees to create a stronger, more productive organization. Participants will spend a total of eight days (four, two-day modules) immersed in thought-provoking and pragmatic training, with action learning components, group discussion, team exercises, and case studies built into each module. Module dates are September 29-30, 2016, November 14-15, 2016, January 23-24, 2017 and March 6-7, 2017.
The program is offered to all MWFPA members. Cost to attend the program is $6,900 per participant and includes instruction, educational materials, meals, parking, and overnight accommodations for all four two-day sessions. Complete information on the program can be found at
online. Don't wait - register today for this premiere event.
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MWFPA Partners On Oilseed & Grain Trade Summit, Organic & Non-GMO Forum
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 MWFPA is a proud partner in this years co-located Oilseed & Grain Trade Summit and Organic and Non-GMO Forum. These annual events are taking place November 14-15, 2016 at the Hyatt regency in Minneapolis, MN.
The 11th annual Oilseed & Grain Trade Summit is a forum for all participants across the oilseed, grain and feed value chain - from buyers, traders and merchandisers to processors and providers of transportation/logistics services. Discussions will be laser-focused on what new developments have arisen, such as emerging market opportunities for exports to Cuba, or prospects from increased competition on exports from Brazil and Argentina.
Similarly, conversations that are fundamental to engagement in the sector, such as outlook projections, strategies for risk management, and insight on the near-term impacts of weather on agriculture, will be more closely examined.
The 2nd annual Organic & Non-GMO Forum, which was expanded this year after an incredibly successful inaugural year, will focus on the development of supply chains and other business opportunities in the sector. Leading experts will provide both overviews and deep-dives into the most relevant issues facing the sector, including S&D forecasting and the impact of evolving policies.
For more information, see the summit website.
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MWFPA Events You Won't Want To Miss
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October 6, 2016: MWFPA Sporting Clays Challenge. Milford Hills, Johnson Creek, WI.
November 29- December 1, 2016:
MWFPA 112th Annual Convention and 89th Processing Crops Conference. Kalahari Resort & Convention Center, Wisconsin Dells, WI.
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Other Educational Opportunities
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August 22-24, 2016: Preventive Controls for Human Food Qualified Individual Training. Minnesota Food Safety and Defense Task Force. Pomeroy Center, Room 215, University of Minnesota,
1964 Fitch Ave, Saint Paul, MN. Created by the Food Safety and Preventive Controls Alliance (FSPCA) in partnership with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), this course meets the Preventive Controls for Human Food Qualified Individual training requirements. Certificates will be issued to each participant documenting completion of this course. For more information, click here .
August 31, 2016: Agronomy/Soils Field Day. The University of Wisconsin Departments of Agronomy and Soil Science in conjunction with the Arlington Agricultural Research Station will host their annual field day on August 31, 2016 from 8:00a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The field day will highlight UW-Madison research on all facets of crop production and soil management. View the day's schedule here. The UW-Arlington Agricultural Research Station is located 5 miles south of Arlington and 15 miles north of Madison, WI. Watch for the Field Day signs.
September 26-30, 2016:
Private Label, Food Service and Retail Products Trade Mission.
Monterrey and Mexico City, Mexico. Expand your export sales in Mexico by joining Food Export-Midwest and the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture on the Focused Trade Mission to Mexico, for Private Label, Food Service and Retail food product companies. Cost: $400 by the Early Registration Deadline - May 23, 2016. For more information, contact Ashwini Rao/ 608-224-5119/ [email protected]. Register here.
September 29-30, 2016:
High Performance Leadership & Management Skills for Dairy and Food Professionals. Fluno Center, University of Wisconsin - Madison, 601 University Ave, Madison, WI. For more information, see article above, or go to the program
website.
October 12-13, 2016:
Preventive Maintenance Optimization.
DoubleTree by Hilton, 525 West Johnson Street, Madison, WI.
Stop blindly following your manufacturers' recommendations for preventive maintenance optimization programs. Learn how to transform your existing program into an effective and efficient system, and establish a culture of continuous improvement at this University of Wisconsin School of Engineering course. Click
here.
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