A Reflection on the 14th Stored Product Protection Conference
By Tom Mueller
It was worth it.
Sweating the details, investing the capital, fretting for the first two months after the announcement and wondering if anyone is going to show up, organizing the tours, acquiring the sponsorships, working with the speakers, creating the content, designing the posters, sacrificing other areas of the business, assembling welcome packets, multiple site visits, arguments/heated conversations, and (oh yeah) preparing a presentation as well as moderating.
It was all worth it.
Our purpose at Insects Limited is to help protect the world’s food and cherished belongings from damage by insect pests. We do this by incorporating science, education, innovation, and quality pheromone technology products. This conference was a commitment to our belief that if we can educate our niche area of the pest control industry, then we really can move one step closer to protecting the world’s food (and cherished belongings). Educating the world is not just a fluff statement and we said this throughout the 2-day conference in West Lafayette, IN. USA on June 13-14.
Of the 119 people in attendance, there were 11 countries represented from 6 continents. Rarely have I been prouder of this company and our team members than when each attendee stood up to introduce themselves (Name, Company, Years in the Industry, number of SPP conferences attended in the past) to start the conference. There was a nice buzz throughout the conference with pest control operators, technical directors, quality managers from food manufacturers, academics, and vendors together all collaborating on food safety and stored product protection. It was almost as if each integral person in food safety were all there hearing the same topics and discussing ways to improve their processes to help protect the food they produce and the brand they represent.
The speakers were top-notch. With a focus on new and innovative technology and methodology, the topics ranged from the importance of properly conducting a grain fumigation to remote pest monitoring, to protecting food in African nations, the topics were practical and relevant. Attendees were also lucky to have 4 members of FSS
It wasn’t all just about the presentations and tours. The real conversations and friendships were constructed during our welcome reception as well as the social event, sponsored by UPL. We all packed into the second floor at Harry’s Chocolate Shop and filled our stomachs with heavy hors d’oeuvres and some of us filled it with beer as well. It was an opportunity to share about our countries, our companies, tell “war stories,” and connect with one another outside a professional setting. (Westfield, IN) conducting a demonstration of a grain bin fumigation on-site at the Purdue Research Farm.
Planning an international conference takes attention to every detail, and loads of patience, it’s stressful, and there are sacrifices that must be made in the day-to-day running of the company, but it was worth it.
If you or your company are interested in partnering to host the next conference, please contact me at t.mueller@insectslimited.com. We are open to partnering with companies that want to help protect the world’s food and cherished belongings from threats of damage by pests.
View the full photo album from the 14th Stored Product Protection Conference here.
Insects Limited, an Insect Pheromone Company
Insects Limited, Inc. researches, tests, develops, manufactures and distributes pheromones and trapping systems for insects in a global marketplace. The highly qualified staff also can assist with consultation, areas of expert witness, training presentations and grant writing.
Insects Limited, Inc. specializes in a unique niche of pest control that provides mainstream products and services to protect stored food, grain, museum collections, tobacco, timber and fiber worldwide. Please take some time to view these products and services in our web store.
