By Clint Thompson
It is never too early to start thinking about next year’s Southeast Regional Fruit and Vegetable Conference.
The annual conference is scheduled for Jan. 7-9, 2027, in Savannah, Georgia.
Chris Butts, executive director of the Georgia Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (GFVGA), discussed the conference, which includes growers and industry leaders from Georgia, Florida, Alabama and the Carolinas.
“We’re really excited,” Butts said. “The education program has come together incredibly. I think it offers some of the best panels and speakers and experts in our field anywhere, which is fantastic. The trade show is filling up quickly. Innovation Row will be back, so we’re very excited about that. And this is the 25th year for Southeast Regional. We’re just excited for it to be here.”
Registration
Registration is ongoing for the three-day event. Early bird registration ends Dec. 18 with regular registration scheduled from Dec. 19-Jan. 5. Full conference early bird registration costs $275.
The conference next year could be very timely considering a labor bill and farm bill could be finalized by the end of the year; hopefully, for the region’s fruit and vegetable growers.
“That would be great, wouldn’t it, to go to January with a trade deal and a labor deal? I don’t know that we’ll get there entirely by January, but there’s a lot of momentum for the industry right now,” Butts said. “We need to harness that, and we need to hold our elected officials in Washington, D.C. accountable. This is urgent now on H-2A given the California UFW (United Farm Workers) case and the uncertainty that is injected back into the program. We need to get that legislation fixed, passed and fix the bill so that we can avoid this just constant litigation back and forth and the back and forth of wages. It’s time to set this program up in a way that is fair and equal to both provider or employers and employees. We need to make it happen now.