The Produce Marketing Association has canceled an upcoming conference in New Orleans, saying the damage caused by Hurricane Ida has made circumstances too difficult to hold the event at this time.

PMA CEO Cathy Burns announced the decision to cancel PMA's Fresh Summit in a Sept. 17 video. The event was scheduled to be held in New Orleans Oct. 28-30. She noted the city and surrounding region have been declared a federal disaster area because of the hurricane, "and even now face another substantial impact as the remnants of Tropical Storm Nicholas move across the region."

"The reality is Fresh Summit is much more than three days in October, requiring on-the-ground resources weeks before the event," she said. "We are simply not confident that the infrastructure necessary for an event the size and the scale of Fresh Summit will be in place."

The event will not happen virtually, and attendees can expect full refunds of registration fees, according to the association's website. Exhibitors and sponsors can donate their payments to the association, apply them to the 2022 Fresh Summit or schedule a meeting to discuss additional options, PMA's website says.

Next year's Fresh Summit is scheduled for October 27-29, 2022 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Fla.

Hurricane Ida struck Louisiana and surrounding states Aug. 29, causing significant flooding and widespread power outages. Fresh Summit 2019, which was held in Anaheim, Calif., drew nearly 24,000 people, according to the industry news site The Produce News. Fresh Summit 2020 was moved online because of the COVID-19 pandemic. That event was originally set to take place in Dallas.

PMA is the latest association to cancel an upcoming event in New Orleans as the city recovers from the hurricane. The Solar Energy Industries Association, Smart Electric Power Alliance, International Association of Chiefs of Police and National Association for Home Care & Hospice all nixed events planned in the Big Easy.

Other associations are moving forward with their New Orleans events. The Specialty Coffee Association will kick off the Specialty Coffee Expo on Sept. 30, with 50% of attendee revenue donated to New Orleans coffee businesses to help them recover from the hurricane. The American Academy of Ophthalmology is planning to hold its annual conference in November, with Maria Aaron, secretary for the annual meeting, noting in a video that power has been restored to 98% of the city.

"Everything is open and it is happening in New Orleans," she said. "It is time to connect and we're going to do it safely."

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