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11-14-00 Contacts: Reg Clause, ISU Extension, Center for Industrial Research and Service, (515) 370-0268 Teddi Barron, News Service, (515) 294-4778 AG QUALITY INITIATIVE MEETING TO BE HELD NOV. 21 IN CEDAR RAPIDS AMES, Iowa – "Globalization of Quality: Who Defines Agricultural Quality Around the World?" will be the focus of the Iowa Agriculture Quality Initiative's third meeting on quality and supply chain management and the implications for Iowa farmers and agribusinesses. The meeting will be held Tuesday, Nov. 21, from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., at the Crowne Plaza, Five Seasons Hotel in Cedar Rapids. The Iowa Agriculture Quality Initiative is an Iowa State University program. The series of meetings brings together leaders from Iowa agriculture interested in agriculture quality management systems. The purpose is to share information and experiences, learn of opportunities to improve quality management and discuss implications for market access and profitability. "Producers and processors in the United States face growing global competition that threatens both export and domestic markets," said Reg Clause, Iowa State extension industrial/value-added agriculture specialist. "The market no longer assumes you are a reliable supplier of quality. There are new factors of quality coming into the marketplace, which are defining how producers and processors have to operate." Sue Goode, strategic business manager for Cargill, Eddyville, Iowa, will discuss globalization of quality from the perspective of an international food company; Jim Stock, Stock Popcorn Co., Lake View, Iowa, will speak on identity preservation, traceability and quality in exporting; Gary Nesteby, coordinator of the Woods Quality Center, Cedar Rapids, will talk about the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the Iowa Recognition for Performance Excellence; and Stan Johnson, Iowa State University vice provost for extension, will discuss implications for Iowa. "All About ISO," a separate session will be held from 10 a.m. until noon. The workshop will be presented by Merle Pochop, Center for Industrial Research and Service (CIRAS), Iowa State University Extension. It will explore ISO, a universal quality management system used by manufacturing and many service industries and endorsed by more than 110 countries. ISO stands for the International Organization for Standards, which is based in Geneva, Switzerland. Sponsors for the meeting are Iowa State's College of Agriculture, ISU Extension and CIRAS. The Iowa Agriculture Quality Initiative meeting is free and open to the public. Registration is requested. Contact Janet Gardner, (515) 294-5366. -30- |
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