George F. Szczepanski – Sponsorship/Exhibition Sales Manager

Produce Marketing Association

• 3 years experience in fresh produce
• Graduated Saint Joseph's University
• Bachelor's Degree in Food Marketing
• Graduate student at University of Delaware
• Master's Degree in Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics, expected 2010
• Reason for entering the industry:
• "Following a successful internship with the NJDA in college, I found a fondness for the food industry that reached beyond CPG, and existed with products that grew from nothing, and were part of a food system that could help create jobs and feed a healthier nation- the Produce Industry."

George has experience in many different areas of the food industry. He was a summer intern at the New Jersey Department of Agriculture and at Kraft/Nabisco during college. The internship at NJDA sparked his interest in the fresh produce industry. What appealed most to him about the produce industry was the people who worked in the industry.

His interest grew after he got a job with Jac. Vandenberg, Inc. as a Sales/Marketing Representative. He found excitement in the daily challenges that are faced with intuition, educated decisions, advice from colleagues, and even a growing amount of technology. As a Sales/Marketing Representative, his responsibilities included maintaining multiple customer accounts, selling imported fresh fruits from around the world, and managing a 50,000 box kiwi import program. Also, George functioned as a partial season manager of Mexican Grape import program on location in Arizona.

After working for Jac. Vandenberg, Inc for two years, George decided to return to school to earn a Master's Degree in Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics at the University of Delaware. He is expected to graduate in May 2010. At UD, George is a graduate assistant and also works on his own research in international trade and development. In the Summer of 2009, he was an intern at MetLife Insurance where he researched and interpreted market trends in agricultural commodities and made recommendations for possible investment in the form of long term debt. George admits that leaving work to attend graduate school full-time was a difficult decision, but he knows it will pay off when he returns to the industry after graduation.