A Message From United Fresh Chairman Tom Lovelace

Dear Friends,

As our association wrapped up our largest Washington Public Policy Conference last week, I made a decision to write this personal letter to you. Most often you only hear the PR spin from associations, including ours, but I decided it was time for some straight talk about the value our industry receives from United’s government relations programs.

Our dues-paying members have built the strongest, most capable team of experts ever assembled to represent the produce industry in Washington, DC. With a dozen staff experts, lawyers and lobbyists on the team everyday in DC, we have some 200 years of staff experience in shaping government policies on a bipartisan basis. Your Board deploys those resources strategically where it counts the most, and cooperatively with allies throughout the industry. And let me tell you, leaders of Congress and the Administration made it clear at this year’s conference that we have major influence on the most important issues facing our businesses.

Like many other companies, seeing this impact firsthand in recent years has helped me understand and appreciate just how much my own business is affected directly by the strong and successful work our staff and members do together in advancing our industry. From both sides of the aisle, Republican Senator Saxby Chambliss of Georgia and Democratic Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan stood before more than 300 produce leaders and thanked United for our leadership in helping advance more than $3 billion in new Farm Bill investment for our industry. They said it couldn’t have been done without us. From the Senate to the House, leaders of both parties stood during the Farm Bill debate to promote the inclusion of over $1 billion in fresh fruits and vegetables in schools, tens of millions of dollars in new research for food safety, and hundreds of millions in new competitiveness grants in all 50 states to help our companies invest in a profitable future. These are real new dollars that will drive consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables and help develop a new generation of young people eating our products.

When I total these victories, not to mention the more than $500 million in new fruit and vegetable purchases we’ve driven through the Women, Infants and Children program (WIC), I see a return on my dues that is substantial to our industry and directly beneficial to not only my company but yours. When it comes to your business, this is one of the investments that will provide your best ROI.

But I've also seen first-hand this summer how United is fighting for us to change the way FDA does business so this never happens again to your company or mine. We have a lot of heavy lifting to do, but with your help, we will reshape food safety laws, regulations, and policies that have cost our industry dearly without delivering either increased safety or confidence to the public. Today, our Food Safety & Technology Council is writing what may well be the future regulatory road map for the produce industry in updating basic Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs).

At our conference we also hosted the first meetings of our new Market Segment Boards, giving voice to every sector of our industry, so that we can drive a united voice for all. These Boards will serve each sector of our industry to ensure that no individual sector's challenges are less important than another, and no issues are pushed aside. Today's challenges require total supply chain solutions, and our members have elected strong Boards headed by strong leaders to meet those demands. If you're already a member of United, thank you. You're part of a fast-growing team of committed companies that has grown by more than 100 new member companies every year for the past seven years. Attendance at this year's Washington Conference was up 17%, and attendance at our annual convention in Las Vegas in May was up 36%. There's something special going on here, and I want you to be involved personally. I ask you to join in our Chairman's Roundtable program, providing a small extra commitment to support our government advocacy, nutrition policy and food safety programs beyond what dues can provide. Just visit our website to learn about the Chairman's Roundtable and join your peers who already stand tall in this commitment.

And, if you're not a member, isn't it time that you joined us? We need your help! United offers all the business-to-business networking, education and training, new product expos and other programs our companies want from a trade association. But we also offer something more you won't find anywhere else. With millions of dollars invested annually in the expertise needed to shape the policies that govern our business, combined with 24-7 "boots on the ground" in Washington, DC, United provides an ROI on your dues investment that's simply unmatched. Seeing is believing so take a look at just a few highlights of the Washington Public Policy Conference.

Please contact me personally with any questions, or any of our leaders shown here. We believe in the power of a united industry, and invite you to join us in this great cause.

	Tom Lovelace Chairman of the Board Executive Vice-President, McEntire Produce
Officers of United Fresh Board of Directors
	Jim Lemke Chairman-Elect Senior Vice President, C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc.
	Emanuel Lazopoulos Past Chairman Senior Vice President, Del Monte Fresh Produce, N.A., Inc.
	Mike Cavallero Secretary-Treasurer President, North American Tropical Fresh Fruit, Dole Food Company