This year’s upcoming Seafood Expo North America/Seafood Processing North America (SENA) event – to be held in Boston, Massachusetts from 19 to 21 March, 2017 – will make history as the largest of its kind, announced the event’s organizer Diversified Communications.
With more than 1,330 companies hailing from 52 countries scheduled to exhibit across more than 253,000 square feet of space, SENA17 is the largest production of the event seen in its 37-year history, exceeding last year’s expo by 231 booths. Countries that have exhibited in the past, such as Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Indonesia, Japan, Korea and the United States have expanded their presence for 2017, organizers said. Additional countries including the Falkland Islands, Lithuania, Mauritius, Myanmar, Poland, Portugal, Tunisia and Sweden are also slated to participate in 2017.
“This has been an incredible year in terms of exhibit space and participation and we couldn’t be more pleased,” said Wynter Courmont, Event Director for Diversified Communications.
With American consumers steadily adding more seafood to their diets – according to a survey published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. seafood consumers added one pound of seafood to their diets in 2015, and per capita consumption of seafood climbed to 15.5 pounds over the previous year – SENA is more relevant than ever for the seafood industry, said Liz Plizga, Vice President of Seafood Expositions for Diversified Communications.
“This data supports the continued need and importance of the event for the seafood community,” Plizga said.
Over the course of three days, SENA welcomes key buyers from restaurants, supermarkets, catering firms, seafood markets, hotels, airlines and cruise lines as well as importers, wholesalers and distributors to its show floor. The 2017 SENA conference program is another featured part of the expo, with 20 education sessions ffeaturing top seafood industry experts presenting on trends affecting modern seafood markets.
“This is the place to meet with buyers, prospect new business and see trends and what’s taking place in the industry,” said Richard Jeanette of Maritime Products International, a longtime exhibitor at the event.
“We are in such a digital time that being reminded that there are actual people behind these invoices and emails is still a crucial part of business,” added Blair Snyder, a buyer with Whole Foods Market, regarding the value of the face-to-face vendor meetings that transpire during the exposition.
Special events including the New Product Showcase, Featured Product Showcase, Seafood Excellence Awards, master classes on oysters and sea urchin, culinary demonstrations and the 11th annual Oyster Shucking Competition are also open to all attendees in the exhibit hall within the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center.
Diversified Communications produces SENA, the largest seafood exposition event in North America; Seafood Expo Global/Seafood Processing Global (SEG), the largest seafood exposition event for the world market, held in Brussels, Belgium; and Seafood Expo Asia (SEA), held in Hong Kong in the fall. It is also the parent company of SeafoodSource, the official media for SENA, SEG and SEA.
