BevExpo, a new biennial beverage industry trade show, is getting ready to launch Sept. 29-Oct. 1 at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Fla. Show organizers plan to showcase innovations in beverage manufacturing equipment, packaging, ingredients and formulation, materials handling, merchandising, vending and foodservice business. BevExpo is sponsored by the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA), the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA), the International Association of Food Industry Suppliers (IAFIS) and Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMC), and is designed for beverage marketers, manufacturers, bottlers and distributors of bottled water, soft drinks, milk, juices, enhanced beverages, coffee and tea, beer and other beverages, for companies operating in the United States, Latin America and around the world.  Additionally, the drinktec 2005 European trade show serves as a marketing partner to BevExpo, and the International Society of Beverage Technologists is a supporting association of the show.

In addition to exhibitor booths and educational programs, the BevExpo meeting will also be the site of the IBWA’s 46th Annual Convention and the board and committee meetings of the IDFA, IAFIS and the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) – the National Milk Mustache "got milk?" Campaign.

“When we set out to create BevExpo, our research strongly indicated that beverage industry professionals want a trade show that offers information on key industry issues as well as the latest innovations,” says IDFA President and Chief Executive Officer Connie Tipton. “BevExpo combines those two critical elements and offers significant value to attendees.”

Delivering the keynote address on Wednesday, Sept. 29 will be Mike Weinstein, former Snapple chief executive officer, who speak on “Snap Judgments — The Snapple Story”. In the mid-1990s, Snapple plummeted from profitability to huge losses virtually overnight. Within six months of becoming CEO, Weinstein and his team returned the brand to its former growth trajectory and put it back in the black. “Snap Judgments” examines the history of a great brand that experienced dramatic peaks and valleys and offers a lesson on how business momentum can shift dramatically and the steps that can be taken to ensure success or avoid disaster.

Weinsten kicks off a conference program that also includes subjects such as: What’s New in Beverages — A Worldwide Overview; New Developments in Packaging; Market Trends and Developments in Bottled Water; a Merchandising Series; Challenges for Improvement in Current and Future Beverage Operations; Grow, Merge or Sell? How to Survive Beverage Industry Consolidation; Milk Business: New research from the Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP); and The Changing Landscape of the Bottled Water HOD Business – Roundtable.

Unique to the BevExpo will be its focus on ingredient technology such as the latest developments in flavors, fractionated proteins, sweeteners, functional ingredients, vitamins, stabilizers and more. The show’s Technology Innovations will feature cutting-edge developments for all beverage categories including milk and milk drinks, waters, carbonated beverages and more.