The organic marketplace is constantly evolving, continually confronting challenges and taking advantage of new opportunities. All around the world, organic is growing at double-digit annually. Growth continues via traditional channels, but at the same time is entering the mainstream. New players from big conventional businesses are stepping up to take an active role in pushing organic markets in to unknown dimensions, thus presenting new challenges and opportunities for everyone involved, including the consumer.
IFOAM is organizing an trade symposium to discuss the implications of large-scale conventional businesses entering the organic marketplace. The conversation will address both the challenges as well as the opportunities provided by the mainstreaming of organic. This trade symposium will be a pre-BioFach event. BioFach clearly brings the world leaders on organic trade together and provides the ideal environment to hold this important symposium.
The event is called “In–between discount and premium: Friend or foe?” and will be held Wednesday, February 14, 2006 from 14:00 to 18:00.
The symposium will consist of a reception from 14:00 to 15:00. From 15:00 to 18:00 there will be four presentations and open discussion. The IFOAM Trade Symposium will address a wide range of issues, including ethics, economics, opportunities and risks involved in the organic sector’s development. In addition, invited experts will discuss the ‘war on resources’, pricing and keys and breakthroughs for accessing new consumer groups. IFOAM has invited leaders in trade to have an open and meaningful conversation on these topics.
Dr. Götz Rehn, - Director, Alnatura
The founder and managing director of Alnatura, Dr. Rehn received the distinguished Ernst & Young entrepreneur of the year award in the trade category among 350 competitors. Alnatura manufactures approximately 600 organic products under its brand and operates 21 organic supermarkets throughout Germany. Dr. Rehn attributes his success to the demand of consumers, which results in an increasing number of jobs with Alnatura. Maximization of profit is not his goal; profit is a condition that must correspond to the needs of consumers, who are searching for high-quality organic food for the long term.
“Meaningful for humans and nature” is the credo of Alnatura; ethics, ecology and economy are not contrasts, but go hand-in-hand with the impressive development of Alnatura. Dr. Rehn represents the federation of organic supermarkets in the executive committee, the central association for agricultural producers, processing plants and dealers of organic food in Germany.
Mr. Bruno Fischer, - Director of International Procurement, Europe and South America, The Hain Celestial Group
Bruno Fischer was born 1958 as the son of a master butcher into a family of generations of master-butchers. In the late 70’s he started the production of meat-alternatives and other vegetarian healthfoods in the family meat-processing-plant.
Over the past 10 years, he developed and produced more than 15 lines of organic and vegan food products including hearty breadspreads, vegan sausages, vegan mayonnaise, tomato ketchups & tomato sauces, burger mixes, soup stocks, sugar free jams, sweet nut-spreads, salad dressings and much more.
He then sold the company and founded Natumi after more than a decade of research into dairy alternatives. Natumi soon became a leading producer of dairy alternatives, and was aquired by Hain-Celestial in 2004.
Today he works as the Director of Procurement for Europe and South America for The Hain Celestial Group. His function encompasses consolidation and sourcing of ingredients for manufacturing plants in the US and Europe with an emphasis on organic ingredients.
He is alsothe founding Member and long-time director of the Organic Processors Association BNN-He in Germany. He also aided in the development of the the IFOAM Accreditation System as a member of the Evaluation Committee.
Thomas B. Harding, Jr., - President of AgriSystems International
Mr. Thomas has spent over 33 years as an international consultant to agriculture, forestry, fisheries and the trade, both public and private sectors, in developing certified organic production and value added systems and markets for organic products in over sixty (60) countries. Mr. Harding is a specialist in the preparation for Organic/Fair Trade/Humane Care inspection and certification, linking strategic market partnerships, and international regulations, global standards development and organic product labeling, import and export requirements. He works in the area of sustainable and organic aquatic systems development, state-of-the-art organic processing and manufacturing systems, organic product ingredient sourcing, due-diligence, audit trail and traceability systems as well as alternative energy and resource management systems. He has assisted many foreign governments and worked with public sector development programs (USAID, European Union, FAO, ITC, UN, Codex Alimentarius, World Bank and GTZ) and significant private sector development throughout North, Central and South America, Asia, Australasia, Africa and Europe.
Mr. Harding is Past President and Founding Member of the Organic Trade Association (OTA); Founder & Past President of OCIA International; Founder & Past President of Institute for Alternative Agriculture, and Past President and World Board Member of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM), (Germany).
He speaks throughout the world on sustainable business and organic agriculture systems and food development and fair-trade – the importance of market access, incentive-based market mechanisms and real cost (internalization-of-the externalities) price-based farm commodities and food.
Mr. Harding was appointed by the Executive Office of the President to the Trade and Environment Policy Advisory Committee (TEPAC), U.S. Trade Representative, Washington, D.C.
Biography
Matthew J. Miller, - Vice President of Marketing/Brand Strategy & Development Consumer Brands/Safeway, Inc.
Matthew J. Miller is primarily responsible for setting the strategic direction of the branded business in term of brand management strategy, channel and consumer marketing strategy and the development of integrated and comprehensive marketing plans that build preference for our brands among consumers.
Safeway has recently introduced O Organics™; a line of over 200 USDA certified organic products that have quickly become one of the most successful organic brand introductions in the United States. Offering consumers great tasting organic food as nature intended and making it available to the widest audience for the greatest value is the O Organics brand mission.
Prior to Safeway, Mr. Miller was a Vice President, Head of Business Excellence-Generating Demand at Nestle , the world’s largest food company at its Switzerland office. Matt spent four years with Nestle Purina Pet Care Company as Director of Marketing and three years as Vice President Managing Director Western Region in its’ Customer Development Group.
He received his Bachelor of Science in Economics and his MBA from Arizona State University. Matt resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife and three children.
Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 50 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America. The company operates 1,767 stores in the United States and Canada and had sales of $38.4 billion in 2005. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.
The symposium is held in English