ND Department of Agriculture Press Releases

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE APRIL 24, 2008

PRIDE OF DAKOTA COMPANIES PART OF INTERNATIONAL FOOD SHOW

BISMARCK – Five Pride of Dakota companies will be meeting and negotiating with national and international buyers at the Food Export Showcase at the Global Food & Style Expo 2008, April 27-29, at McCormick Place in Chicago.

“The U.S. Food Export Showcase is one of the largest food trade shows in the country,” said Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson, who is attending the event as president of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA). “It attracts buyers from every major market, enabling our North Dakota companies to reach out to hundreds of potential customers from supermarkets and convenience stores to restaurants, food service companies and specialty shops.”

Pride of Dakota companies participating in the trade show include Full Charge Energy Foods, Hope; Flax USA, Goodrich; Premium Gold Flax Products, Inc., Denhoff; West Dakota Feed & Seed, Ross, and US Omega 3 Foods, Wheatland.

These companies will all be located on the US Food Export Showcase show floor in the North Dakota state pavilion.

The Global Food & Style Expo is comprised of the U.S. Food Export Showcase, sponsored by NASDA; the Fancy Food Show, sponsored by the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT), and the All Things Organic show, sponsored by the Organic Trade Association.

As president of NASDA, Johnson, together with NASFT and National Restaurant Association representatives, promoted the Food Export Showcase with their hosts during a NASDA trade mission to China last November.

“As a result, China will send more than 100 people, representing about 75 companies and six magazines, to Chicago for the show,” Johnson said. “I will be meeting with them and with many of the other companies from around the world at this show.”

Johnson said the Food Export Showcase is “opportunity to increase awareness of what North Dakota has to offer, and to market our products to international and domestic markets without having the expense of flying to a show overseas.”

Two North Dakota Department of Agriculture marketing specialists, Sara Kelsch and Stephanie Sinner, will be working at the North Dakota pavilion.

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MEDIA: For more information, please call Ted Quanrud at (701) 328-2233 or tquanrud@nd.gov or Patrice Lahlum at (701) 239-7210 or plahlum@nd.gov.