Catch Rebecca Kane at AFIA Events

Written by: Lacie Dotterweich   |   January 5, 2023

events

Rebecca Kane, CMP, recently joined the American Feed Industry Association, taking the helm of directing our meetings and events. I asked her about working in events and what she is excited about for this upcoming year.

1. What are you excited about for this year’s events?

Kane: I am excited to keep growing AFIA's programs. I am always thinking about what can we do differently and how can we enhance the member experience. I am excited to start with the Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference (PISC), as the one thing I hear from everyone is that they come there to do business, so they find themselves a spot and may not move for three days. That tells me that we need to provide more places for our attendees to do business in networking areas, such as bringing in lounges and giving them the opportunity to meet. I have also heard it is hard to set-up meetings with people, especially for those who are new to the conference. We are bringing in a new app for PISC that will have the ability to filter through the registered attendees to know who is attending as a buyer or seller and then message each other within the app. I am excited to provide opportunities for our members and attendees to meet and do business, and look at ways to enhance it, which makes it exciting.

2. What is your favorite thing about working in events?

Kane: I love what I do. It is the fifth most stressful job in country (which is true) and I love it. My favorite part is the execution of a program. I take pride in what I do and with all the vision-setting and creating it takes to put on a program - to see it come together is my favorite thing. My not favorite thing is the exhaustion after the program, but I am ready to do it again a few days after that.

3. Outside of work, what are your favorite things to do?

Kane: I love the theater; I’m constantly going to see shows and like the escape.

_____

We released our calendar of AFIA events for the year; catch Rebecca and introduce yourself at one of our events!

• Jan. 24-26: International Feed Expo at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 24: Pet Food Conference at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 25: Biosecurity: Preparedness Must Be Perpetual at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 25: Facility Inspection Package Training by USDA-APHIS at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• Jan. 25: Feed Education Program at IPPE - Atlanta, Ga.
• March 7-9: Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference - Orlando, Fla.
• July 25-27: FSMA PCQI Training - Nashville, Tenn.
• Sept. 12-14: Liquid Feed Symposium - Louisville, Ky.
• Nov. 8-10: Equipment Manufacturers Conference - Tucson, Ariz.

Early-bird registration for the International Production & Processing Expo events and AFIA's Purchasing and Ingredient Suppliers Conference ends this Friday, Jan. 6.

The AFIA will also continue its partnership with Kansas State University to offer a five-week online course, "AFIA-KSU 500: Fundamentals of Feed Manufacturing." The course will be offered between:

• Feb. 21 - March 28;
• April 11 - May 16;
• June 6 - July 11;
• Aug. 1 - Sept. 5; and
• Oct. 3 - Nov. 7.

For more information or to register, visit afia.org/events