The Specialty Food Association (SFA) has scheduled its sole in-person trade show this year, to be known as the Fancy Food Show 2021, to run from September 27-29 at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City.
At the moment the facility, which has been devoid of trade shows and public gatherings since government-mandated shutdowns and quarantines followed the World Health Organization’s official declaration of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic early last year, is operating as a Covid-19 vaccination center. I
The SFA consulted with its members, New York City and State officials, the Javits Center, and health experts, to gauge the safety and viability of moving forward with a live event. After an intensive analysis, it decided upon a modified, late third-quarter Fancy Food Show.
“We are grateful to our members, New York State and City officials, and the Javits Center, for working with us on determining the best course of action during these uncertain times,” said Bill Lynch, president of the SFA. “Safely and creatively supporting our members, and the specialty food industry overall, remains our number one priority.”
Due to pandemic restrictions in place since March 2020, both the 2020 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City and 2021 Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco were canceled. In the absence of its traditional face-to-face trade shows, and to promote the continued growth of the $158.4 billion specialty food industry, the SFA went virtual to produce its 47th sofiTM Awards; produced two Specialty Food LIVE!TM digital marketplace events and three Virtual Tasting Experience events.
In addition it organized 37 webinars designed to assist members and the industry with business continuity during the pandemic, along with 21 webinars on a broad range of educational topics; and launched Infinite Aisle, a new transactional marketplace connecting SFA maker members with distributors and retail buyers.
The September 27-29 Fancy Food Show is a trade-only show. For information about the event, visit www.specialtyfood.com.
