A Journey of Momentum, Community, and What's Next

The past three weeks have been nothing short of extraordinary for the Supply Chain of the Future initiative. From Atlanta to Anaheim to Washington D.C., our community came together in ways that exceeded even our most optimistic expectations. What we witnessed wasn't just a series of successful events—it was the manifestation of an industry-wide movement that's gaining unstoppable momentum. Let us take you on that journey.

Atlanta: Building Global Standards Infrastructure

A week before the Global Produce & Floral Show, Michael Darden (DFM Data Corp), Jaco Voorspuij (FixLog Consulting), and Michael Coner (Blockticity) from our Harmonized Standards working group together with Drew Zabrocki and Martha King (TOTEM) convened in Atlanta alongside leaders from ASTM International. This wasn't a casual meeting—this was deep, strategic work examining how Supply Chain of the Future connects across critical supply chains globally and weaves into the standards that will harmonize various standards organizations and regulatory frameworks around the world.

This is the same team that stood before the World Trade Organization's Technical Barriers to Trade Committee in Geneva this past summer, demonstrating that our industry-led, non-competitive, pre-commercial collaboration is the way forward. The path to bringing industry standards development organizations and authorities having jurisdiction together to create standards that are practicable and implementable at scale.

The conversations in Atlanta were intense, strategic, and productive. Multiple technical committees referenced work being done in Supply Chain of the Future, and new relationships emerged with additional standards organizations in Europe and beyond. The foundation for global harmonization is being built, brick by brick.

Anaheim: The Crescendo

From Atlanta, we touched ground briefly before diving headfirst into what would become the most successful showcase in our initiative's history.

The Day Before the Show

The ‘voulentold’  team assembled—including Michael Darden (DFM Data Corp), Chris Latta (Kwik Lok), Morgan Craven (Farm Foundation) and  Martha King (TOTEM). Martha led the herculean effort of assembling hundreds of advocacy toolkits: cards, ribbons, pens, cheat sheets, QR codes. We armed our friends of Supply Chain of the Future with everything they needed for the days ahead.

Wednesday: A Day of Parallel Power

The show hadn't officially started, but we were already in full swing:

• Supply Chain Council Meeting: Fantastic presentations from DFM Data, Kwik Lok, and Delta Trak, with rich conversations among our Supply Chain Council members.

  
  

• Food Safety Council: Martha presented our Full Circle Integration approach—emphasizing that supply chain touches everything from food safety to sustainability to packaging to regulatory compliance. The response? Enthusiastic commitment to collaborate more closely in 2026.

  
  

• Global Sustainability Framework: The Totem team facilitated an all-day ideation session with the Sustainability Council in partnership with the Consumer Goods Forum. We set the path forward for how sustainability frameworks can be harmonized and aligned globally, leveraging many of our methodologies and approaches.

  
  

• Retailer Closed-Door Meeting: Perhaps the most pivotal conversation of the week. There was tension initially—honest, productive tension. But once everyone in the room realized we were all saying the same thing—"let's work together on this"—guards came down. Sticky notes and pens flew around the room. Forward-thinking retailers made it clear: they see the potential, they want to engage, but we need clear alignment on intentions and rules of the road. Those conversations continue, and we're excited about deeper retail partnership ahead.  (Read the full report here)

And that was just Wednesday.

Thursday: Standing Room Only

The day started with Cathy Burns' inspiring State of the Industry breakfast—an hour-long celebration of the power of fresh produce globally and IFPA's impact on millions of lives worldwide. Supply Chain of the Future was featured throughout.

Then came our two panel sessions:

Executive Panel (moderated by Steve Alaerts of foodcareplus): Tony Freytag of Crunch Pak, Mohammed Abbas of Fresh Del Monte, Hua Huynh of Driscoll's, and Clint Lewis of Agrofresh cast a vision that was crystal clear: If you're not part of this initiative, you're missing out. This is the future. We're building it. You're either going to be part of building it, or you're going to take what's built. Who wants that? Come have a seat at the table.

Technical & Practical Panel (facilitated by Drew Zabrocki): Mike Laws of Laws Logistics, Liz Sertl of GS1 US, Jack Lagier of Driscoll's, and Michael Darden of DFM Data cut straight to the chase—how Harmonized Standards, Smart Data Escrow, and our connected tools provide real value with heavy emphasis on ROI.

The numbers speak for themselves: Over 500 people attended the first session. Nearly 400 stayed for the second. Standing room only. More attendees than any previous IFPA education festival session in history. The community hall afterward buzzed with vibrant conversations that lasted well into the evening's VIP Retail Social.

Friday & Saturday: The Expo Floor

Our Innovation Pavilion kiosk became a hub of activity, staffed by amazing volunteers who gave their time, energy, and expertise.  We are deeply grateful to Marc Beasely (Essex Data Research), Morgan Craven (Farm Foundation), Michael Darden (DFM Data Corp), John Abkes, and the team at GS1 US: Liz Sertl, Lucy Angarita, Randie Stone, Adam Daniels, Matt Andrews, and Patrick Javick, together with for everyone who made that possible.

Over two days:

• Hundreds of website visits and sign-ups

• Countless conversations at our Tech Exchange kiosk

• Two panel discussions Friday and Saturday afternoons

• Three podcasts recorded at the IFPA podcast booth (professional editing underway—stay tuned!)

The podcasts feature:

1. Technology Deep Dive: Michael Darden of DFM Data and Ryan Clark of PureChex on organizing and orchestrating information sharing across the supply chain

   
   

2. Day in the Life: Wholesale distributors  Hutch Morton, SVP Business Development at J.E. Russell & Sons and  Bill Loupée, COO at Ben B. Schwartz & Sons,  revealing the pace and challenges of high-volume market operations

   
   

3. Strategic Imperative: Max Teplitski (IFPA Chief Science Officer), Mohammed Abbas (Fresh Del Monte COO), Drew Zabrocki, CEO of (Totem), and Rob Trice, Co-Founder (COSSAF) in a peer conversation about shepherding this initiative into the future

By Saturday afternoon, we could barely talk—but we couldn't stop. The energy was that powerful.

Washington D.C.: Shaping Policy and the Future

Two days after the show, we were at the National Press Club co-facilitating an event focused on “U.S. Agriculture and Food Systems on the Global Stage” with Agri-Pulse Communications. The conversation? Agriculture, supply chain, and sustainability policy issues facing our industry. The Totem team continues to work not just on supply chains, but on shaping a better future across the board. Learn more and watch the videos from the event here.

What This All Means

This three-week sprint demonstrated something profound: The energy is real. The commitment is real. The results are real.

Your participation and engagement have been nothing short of fantastic. We could not do this without you. And now, it's time to take a breath, reflect, and chart our course forward together.

Save the Date: Community Retrospective & Strategic Planning

Date: November 20, 2025

Time: 10:00am - 11:30am PST

Format: 90-minute interactive virtual workshop

This isn't just another meeting. This is our opportunity to:

• Reflect on what we've accomplished in less than a year

• Be honest about what we could do better

• Shape the priorities and roadmap for 2026

• Build consensus around how we organize and activate our community for maximum impact

We'll be covering:

• Where we've come from and what we've achieved

• Financial transparency and governance updates

• Interactive retrospective: What worked? What needs improvement?

• Strategic planning: 2026 priorities, tactics, and resource commitments

Before the Meeting

We encourage you to:

Watch the new Video Series (available at www.supplychainofthefuture.org):

• For Solution Builders: Technical experts, developers, standards professionals

• For Industry Leaders: Visionaries shaping the future

• For Business Innovators: ROI-focused commercial leaders

• Working Group Deep Dives:

  • Full Circle Integration, 

  • Innovation & Technical Programs

  • Harmonized Standards & Smart Data Escrow

  • Note: Shelf Life Prediction & Dynamic Incentives video coming soon—it's our most in-depth content yet

Pay special attention to the Full Circle Integration and Innovation & Technical Programs videos. Come prepared with questions, thoughts, and ideas.