Fall 2025 Conference

The following activity on 10/22 is available only to members of the Paper Recovery Alliance/Plastic Recovery Group and Paper Cup Alliance groups (PRA/PRG and PCA) of FPI. (This is separate from standard FPI membership.) To verify your company’s membership in the group, please check the list on our website. If your company is not a member of the PRA/PRG and you would like more information, please contact us. 

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22 

8:00 am – 5:00 pm: Paper Recovery Alliance/Plastics Recovery Group and Paper Cup Alliance Meeting 

No scheduled evening function 

CONFERENCE EVENTS 

The following activities are included with your conference registration, with the exception of the Board of Directors meeting. This is for the current Board of Directors only. Please note specific categories for the breakfasts on Friday morning, and contact us if you have any questions. 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 23 

8:00 am – 5:00 pm:  Registration

8:00 am – 12:00 pm: Board of Directors Meeting (current Board members only) 

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm: Welcome Lunch 

1:00 pm – 5:00 pm: General Session:

State of FPI/Industry/Government Relations
Natha Dempsey, Ashley Elzinga, Carol Patterson – FPI

EPR – From the Consumer Perspective
Suzanne Shelton, ERM Shelton Communications

Suzanne Shelton is a senior partner at ERM Shelton, the nation’s leading marketing communications agency entirely focused in the sustainability space. She regularly counsels C-level executives at Fortune 1000 organizations on how to best define and leverage their sustainability approaches to drive business results. She currently serves on the board of BioLogiQ, and recently served on the board of the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) and the executive advisory board of Cyclyx. She is also a member of the Exceptional Women Alliance. Ms. Shelton offers insights and inspiration on conference stages around the country, guest writes for Trellis, and directly manages a team of leaders who, collectively, have made the company a success story since 1991.

Packaging Trends in the QSR Industry
Ben Coley, Editor, QSR Magazine

Ben Coley is the editor of QSR Magazine, published by WTWH Media, where he covers the entire scope of quick-service news, including growth, operations, menu development, technology and more. He previously worked for The Dispatch newspaper, where he primarily covered county government and business and wrote for Davidson Living Magazine. He also has sports writing experience from the Goldsboro News-Argus and The Daily Tar Heel. Ben Coley is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill.

QSR/FPI Packaging Awards

6:00 pm – 8:00 pm: Reception and Dinner Event

Join us for a reception style dinner event at the Green-Meldrim House, just 2 blocks from the hotel. The Green-Meldrim House is an 1853 Gothic-Revival style gem which housed the military headquarters of General WT Sherman following the March-to-the-Sea during the Civil War. The house showcases the stories of the people who lived, worked, built, and made history in what became a National Historic Landmark. Guided tours of the house will be available during our event.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 24 

8:00 am – 9:00 am: Egg Packaging and Food Packaging Tray Divisions Breakfast Meeting
(converters of egg packaging or food packaging trays)

8:00 am – 9:00 am: Supplier Division Breakfast Meeting (raw materials or machinery suppliers)

8:00 am – 9:00 am: Breakfast for All Other Attendees 

9:00 am – 11:00 am: General Session:

Tariffs/Anti-Dumping
Joshua Morey and John Hermann, Kelley Drye & Warren LLP

Joshua Morey is a partner in the International Trade practice of Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, where he advises clients on a range of matters concerning global commerce.

With a particular focus on antidumping and countervailing duty proceedings, Joshua is passionately committed to solving his clients’ trade and supply chain concerns, addressing unfair trade practices, and formulating beneficial policies and legislation to help his clients compete and thrive.

Joshua represents clients, industries, and trade associations across a broad spectrum of sectors, including agriculture, metals, fabricated products, and consumer goods. His counseling and advocacy are informed by the immersive understanding he develops about the goods and markets at the heart of his efforts.

Joshua also represents clients in Section 232 proceedings, Section 301 proceedings, EAPA proceedings, and subsequent litigation at the U.S. Court of International Trade and U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

John Herrmann is a partner at Kelley Drye & Warren LLP, where he serves as chair of the firm’s International Trade practice. John guides domestic businesses and business coalitions on the use of antidumping and countervailing duty laws and has a successful track record of helping major U.S. industries address injury caused by unfairly traded imports. John’s clients include U.S. producers of aluminum, steel, and other metals, as well as chemical and agricultural products.

John also advocates for clients before Congress and the Executive Branch, drawing on longstanding relationships formed while serving in the administration of President George W. Bush, including work at the White House on the National Security Council staff. John worked as the Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for International Trade, Energy and Environment, where he was responsible for advising the President on international trade and investment issues and for the international aspects of energy and environmental policy.

At the White House, John’s work on key issues included the WTO Doha Round negotiations, efforts to conclude and secure Congressional approval of free trade agreements, overseeing activities of the President’s Interagency Working Group on Import Safety and representing the National Security Council at meetings of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). John was also involved in export control and sanctions issues and preparing for meetings of the cabinet-level U.S.-E.U. Transatlantic Economic Council, the U.S.-India Economic Dialogue and CEO Forum, and the U.S.-China Strategic Economic Dialogue, including preparation for the November 2008 G-20 financial summit. John was one of only a handful of senior National Security Council staff asked to carryover with the administration of President Barack H. Obama to assist on transition activities.

FPI Semi-Annual Member Meeting

Members will receive a financial update and hear how FPI is progressing with its key focus areas for 2025. All are welcome to attend.  FPI requests that at least one person per member company remains to participate in this session.

11:00 am: Adjourn 

* Please note speakers and schedule are subject to change.