MCLEAN, Va., Feb. 15, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Food Processing Suppliers Association (FPSA) today announced that its Women’s Council and the Young Professionals Group (YPG) will both hold meetings at the 2018 Annual Conference taking place March 21-23 at the Loews Ventana Canyon Resort in Tucson, Arizona.

The Women’s Council will hold its Annual Meeting from 5:00-6:00 pm on Wednesday, March 21 to work on developing the Council’s strategic goals for 2018 and 2019. Any eligible professionals interested in joining the Women’s Council and attending the meeting are welcome.

“This is our first face to face meeting since the extremely successful Women’s Council Networking Breakfast held during Process Expo in September,” said Mary George, Co-Chair of the Women’s Council. “We are excited to get back together again following several enlightening webinars and conference calls that have served to build momentum for our group.”

“The Women’s Council supports its members to achieve both professional and personal growth,” said Women’s Council Co-Chair Kate Rome. “By coming together, we help our members to be even more successful in their careers. Council members come from a wide variety of industry segments and job titles, providing ample diversity and experience that we are happy to share with our fellow professionals.”

Additionally, the FPSA Young Professionals Group will hold its Annual Meeting on Friday, March 23 from 1:30-3:30 pm. During this planning meeting, members of the YPG will network with colleagues, address current issues and trends and plan additional events and activities to take place later this year. This meeting is also open to any eligible FPSA members who are interested in joining the group.

“This is the second time that the Young Professionals will be meeting at the FPSA Conference,” said Dr. Kohl Schrader. Chairperson of the Young Professionals Group. “Meeting at this executive level conference provides us with valuable exposure to colleagues and potential customers and a unique opportunity for us to network. Our Annual Meeting is very much an open forum where we share the challenges we face in our careers and brainstorm on ways to address them. Given the success of our last several meet-ups, we look forward to hosting an excellent group in March.”

Registration for the 2018 FPSA Annual Conference is now open at www.fpsa.org. Special promotional rates are available for young professionals and/or those interested in attending the Women’s Council meeting. Additionally, the early-bird registration rate of $850 for FPSA members is in effect until February 22. For more information on the FPSA Annual Conference, contact Dolores Alonso at (703) 663-1226 or dalonso@fpsa.org.

The Food Processing Suppliers Association (FPSA) is a global trade association serving suppliers in the food and beverage industries. The Association's programs and services support member’s success by providing assistance in marketing their products and services, overall improvement in key business practices and many opportunities to network among industry colleagues.  Programs and services to achieve these objectives include PROCESS EXPO (industry leading trade show), electronic media marketing, education, market intelligence, research, and advocation of critical industry issues such as food safety, sanitary design of equipment, and global trade.

FPSA members are organized in vertical industry councils which focus on specific needs and concerns that are unique to each industry sector. FPSA councils currently represent the Bakery, Beverage, Dairy, Prepared Foods and Meat sectors.