One of the fresh produce and floral supply chain’s major annual gatherings, the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) Global Produce & Floral Show brought industry decision-makers to Orlando, Florida, in October 2026. Agraya’s Chief Commercial Officer, Wouter Conradie, attended for the first time, along with colleagues from GLOBALG.A.P. North America, a subsidiary of Agraya GmbH that manages operations for the GLOBALG.A.P. and GGN label brands in the United States and Canada.
Learning about the North American market
Throughout the show, GLOBALG.A.P. North America team members met with stakeholders from across the supply chain, strengthening existing relationships and building new ones. The GLOBALG.A.P. North America booth welcomed a steady stream of visitors for conversations about food safety, sustainability, farm assurance and certification. These included retailers and importers, producers, and certification bodies operating in North America. Discussions reflected the importance of solutions such as Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) for fruit and vegetables, FSMA Produce Safety Rule add-on, and Produce Handling Assurance (PHA) in supporting producers and supply-chain requirements in the region.
Nearby, IFPA’s show-floor education program, the Food Safety and Tech X-Change offered additional opportunities to hear perspectives from across the sector. Wouter participated in the exchange on the IFPA Sustainability Framework and listened to other educational sessions during the event.
The show provided valuable insight into the dynamics of the North American market, particularly customer expectations, the influence of retailers and food brands, and a highly competitive landscape for certification solutions. It reinforced the opportunity to turn certification and audit data into practical intelligence that can help producers and other market participants understand performance, identify trends, benchmark progress and make better-informed decisions.
Differing landscapes, one vision for safe farm assurance solutions
Wouter came away with a clearer view of how North American requirements and priorities differ from those in many other markets where Agraya operates, while also seeing strong recognition of the GLOBALG.A.P. brand and its certification solutions. “It was very insightful to experience and see the difference in the competitive landscape in the US and Canada, where the market has different requirements and priorities compared with most other markets,” he reflected.
The show also created opportunities to discuss regenerative agriculture. Rebecca Anderson, Senior Technical Expert at GLOBALG.A.P. North America, hosted three booth sessions for groups participating in IFPA’s Regenerative Agriculture Tour, while Wouter joined one of the tour groups to hear more about stakeholder perspectives on regenerative agriculture. These conversations reinforced the relevance of the environmental sustainability solution (ESS), which Agraya is developing to address topics including water scarcity and pollution, changes in land use, loss of species, soil degradation, greenhouse gases, and toxicity, while supporting measurement, continuous improvement, and regeneration.
Alongside the interest in ESS, Wouter returned with two broader takeaways, “one takeaway is the importance of transforming collected data into meaningful insights and intelligence that enable market participants and producers to understand performance, identify trends, benchmark themselves, and make better-informed decisions,” he explained. “The second takeaway was the reinforcement of how much we at Agraya can learn from a market where we have a strong base of influencers, including retailers and food brands, unique customer expectations, and a fierce competitive environment.”
Team building
With colleagues together in person, the team also made time for internal learning and team building. At the Kitchen House in Orlando, they prepared a Southern US-inspired meal together, including red beans and rice, chow chow, and cornbread. The gathering provided space to share perspectives on the North American market, discuss important stakeholders, and consider how the GLOBALG.A.P. brand can continue to grow in the region. One internal session focused on GLOBALG.A.P. assurance solutions addressing workers’ rights including the GLOBALG.A.P. Risk Assessment on Social Practice (GRASP) add-on. The experience rounded out a productive week of conversations, learning and relationship-building, with the team already looking ahead to the 2027 Global Produce & Floral Show.
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