August 5, 2009, Washington, DC — As part of the program to address demand enhancement in a difficult economy, the IFCP Speakers Bureau has been created to invite industry experts to participate in panel discussions relating to topics that are of current interest, or that purvey a positive and factual cotton message. The first panel, run in April 16, 2008 was entitled Textile Sourcing and Product Development – 2008, and was held in New York City at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT). The International Forum for Cotton Promotion in conjunction with the Textile Development and Marketing Department of the College co-hosted the event, and in attendance were attendees of the 492nd ICAC Standing Committee, including Delgates, Research Associates, and Secretariat Members.

The IFCP Executive Director and Chairperson of the FIT-TDM Department, Jeff Silberman, moderated the discusion panel of textile based product development specialists from major companies, including WestPoint Home, Town and Country Living, Panjiva, Club Monaco, Liz Claiborne, and Coach, Inc. The program proved valuable to the Standing Committee and guests to understand the influencers that will determine cotton useage.

Based on the success of the ICAC Standing Committee Meeting 492 panel, the event was repeated on April 9, 2009 with another panel, entitled Demand for Cotton in an Economic Crisis, and featured panelists Andrew Olah (Olah, Incorporated), Carly Beumel (Coach), Lois Craig (Independent consultant, formerly fabric development for Target, Inc.), Richard Silvia (Consultant, Home Furnishings), Shazia Shah (Westpoint Home), and Teresa Zugay, (Cotton Incorporated). Thirty-eight delegates, observers, and Members of the ICAC Secretariat attended the two hour session, where the panelists explained the opportunities and challenges that they face in developing cotton opportunities in the current marketplace.

The third in the series was entitled Cotton Sustainability in the Textile Complex, and the featured panel discussion was held at the 3rd Annual Sustainable Business and Design Conference, April 2, 2009, at the Fashion Institute of Technology, entitled Putting Sustainability in Action. Participating on the panel were, Dr. M. Rafiq Chaudhry, Head, Technical Information Section, International Cotton Advisory Committee Secretariat (ICAC), Genessa Fratto, PhD, Manager, Supply Chain Planning, Cotton Incorporated, Edward M. Barnes, PhD, Director, Agricultural Research, Cotton Incorporated, and Marissa DiMascio Barlin, Director, Consumer Marketing, Strategic Alliances, Cotton Incorporated, and was moderated by the IFCP.

The expert panel fielded difficult and controversial topics and questions related to cotton due to their vast experience that covered the entire supply chain, which made the panel one of the highlights of the event. The International Year of Natural Fibres (IYNF) video was incorporated into the program

The panels are filmed, and presented in part during the IFCP Demand Enhancement sessions at the ICAC Plenary meetings, and are used as the core materials for discussions on developing demand enhancement strategies. The IFCP is a private sector organization composed of member associations from around the world. The IFCP serves as a clearinghouse for proven techniques of cotton demand enhancement that can be replicated around the world.

For more information, contact:

Executive Director
Jeffrey Silberman
International Forum for Cotton Promotion
1629 K Street NW, Suite 702
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Tel: (202) 463-6660 Fax: (202) 463-6950
jeff@icac.org