Global Fresh Produce Leaders Convene in Hong Kong for IFPA Executive Leadership Summit Asia  

HONG KONG – The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) convened senior executives from across the global produce and floral supply chain in Hong Kong on September 1 for its Executive Leadership Summit Asia, a one-day, invitation-only forum held ahead of Asia Fruit Logistica. The summit brought together roughly 160+ senior leaders from 20 countries for a candid, peer-driven exchange on the forces reshaping one of the world’s most dynamic produce markets. 

Designed exclusively for executive and senior decision-makers, the program paired curated market intelligence with facilitated discussion on the issues most on leaders’ minds: global economic and trade trends, market access, the evolving retail landscape, sustainability and innovation, and the role of collaboration in protecting the industry’s shared reputation. The day also marked the first-ever meeting of IFPA’s newly formed Asia Council, created to ensure members in the region have a direct hand in shaping the resources, connections, and advocacy IFPA delivers to them.

“What this community represents is a powerful connection and opportunity for collaboration and leadership that ultimately strengthens the future of the fresh produce and floral industry,” said Cathy Burns, CEO of IFPA, in her opening remarks. “These summits are not simply an opportunity for us to talk from the stage. It really is a place for us to learn together and to identify our shared challenges and uncover new opportunities to serve our members with greater relevance, greater impact, and greater purpose.”

After Cathy’s remarks, Professor Patrick Vizzone, IFPA Board Chair and Founder and Managing Partner of AgroNovare Holdings, opened the session by framing a market in transition. According to Vizzone, fresh produce spending across Asia is proving resilient and inelastic even amid inflation, while demand is divided between a value-driven mass market and a fast-growing premium tier defined by quality and provenance. He also pointed to the rapid rise of quick commerce, with penetration already above 80% in parts of China and India, and cautioned that trade access is increasingly shaped by geopolitics as much as by market forces. 

Iván Marambio, President of Frutas de Chile, followed with a call for the industry to treat reputation as a market-access asset. “Markets may compete, products may compete, countries may compete, but trust is shared,” he said, urging leaders to build shared capabilities to identify and respond to emerging risks before a single issue becomes an industry-wide crisis.

A closing executive panel moderated by Burns featured Dean Gall, Chief Commercial Officer of Premier Fresh Australia and IFPA’s ANZ Chair; Elena Hernandez, Vice President of Global Marketing at Sun World International; and Sharath Loganathan, Co-Founder and Business Head of International Business at Ninjacart. The discussion explored how sustainability and innovation translate into measurable business value, from variety development and food-waste reduction to consumer-led demand creation.

In her closing summary, IFPA Chief Membership Officer Miriam Wolk distilled three themes from the day: navigating turbulent market signals, recognizing that risk is increasingly shared across the supply chain, and seizing the opportunity to drive consumption. “Information alone is not enough,” she said. “We need to see our signals early, make better decisions, and move with others. That sequence is where business value is created.”

Wolk also stated, “What struck me most across Executive Leadership Summit and Asia Fruit Logistica was how consistent the message was: in uncertain times, our members are looking for trusted information, sound guidance, and peers who understand what they’re facing — and that’s the real value of being part of this global community.”

The Executive Leadership Summit Asia was scheduled ahead of Asia Fruit Logistica to help international attendees maximize their time in the region. The day concluded with a networking reception. The summit was made possible with the support of presenting sponsors Copeland, Del Monte, Kings River Packing, Rijk Zwaan, and Sun World.

About the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA)

The International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) is the largest and most diverse international association serving the entire fresh produce and floral supply chain and the only to seamlessly integrate world-facing advocacy and industry-facing support. We exist to bring the industry together to create a vibrant future for all. We grow our members’ prosperity by conducting advocacy, connecting people and ideas; and offering guidance that allows us all to take action with purpose and confidence. IFPA represents member companies from small family businesses to the largest international corporations throughout the global fresh fruit and vegetable supply chain, including growers, shippers, fresh-cut processors, wholesalers, distributors, retailers, foodservice operators, industry suppliers and allied associations.