Nation’s Restaurant News’ editorial director Sam Oches spoke with the president and CEO of the International Foodservice Manufacturers Association (IFMA) Phil Kafarakis at the Chain Operators Exchange (COEX) in Austin about the association and the future of the industry.
The two discussed supply chain challenges and how the members of the association — which includes manufacturers, suppliers, operators, non-commercial foodservice providers and more — have been handling the pandemic and the many challenges that have faced the restaurant industry since the beginning of 2020.
Some of the big topics throughout the three-day event that Oches and Kafarakis talked about include the rising prices of goods, how operators are handling the seemingly never-ending supply chain crisis, and COVID’s waning impact on the industry.
Additionally, Nation’s Restaurant News partnered with IFMA and COEX throughout the event to produce a series of podcasts with executives like Paul Damico, CEO of Fuzzy’s Taco Shop; Josh Halpern, CEO of Big Chicken; Patrick Terry, founder of P. Terry’s, and many more. Be sure to check those out on both the Extra Serving and Take-Away with Sam Oches podcast feeds in the upcoming weeks.