It’s late January, and outside my window the temperature is in single-digits...at best. But in the back of my mind, I know that come the first week in March, I’ll be in Orlando, Fla., at the Flexible Packaging Association’s 58th Annual Meeting.

Each year the FPA puts together a fantastic event where industry executives come together for great, informal networking opportunities and timely, informative presentations.

This year’s event will look toward the future of flexible packaging, and will feature high profile speakers discussing topics like capital markets, and mergers & acquisitions, strategies for conducting business in China and the future of packaging. For more information about this event, see the FPA Update on page 10 of this magazine, and visit the FPA’s websitewww.flexpack.org.

The annual meeting is one of the best places for meeting people face-to-face but also giving people the ability to have real conversations and establish significant relationships, both in business and beyond.

Safety & Security

Shortly after the FPA Annual Meeting, there’s a very interesting event in Washington, D.C. - the Food Safety & Security Summit. Though maybe not on the list of usual suspects for flexible packaging events, the FSSS is a great place to find innovations with regard to package and product security. Counterfeiting, diversion and safety are all very timely issues these days, and this event is a great place to find new solutions and network with safety and security experts. Not to mention, no other type of packaging can provide the security features that flexible packaging can.