Exhibitors line up for Washington-Oregon potato conference

The Washington-Oregon Potato Conference trade show continues to grow each year, organizers say. When the conference expanded into the Toyota Center next door, organizers were able to accommodate a waiting list of exhibitors that had grown to 50, said Dale Lathim, chairman of the conference trade show. But now the list is growing again, he said. The conference is Jan. 23-25 at the Three Rivers Convention Center in Kennewick, Wash. The conference even got rid of some larger spaces for big equipment to fit more booths. “We’re accommodating more vendors who are clamoring to be in the show, and we’re trying to include as many of them as possible,” Lathim said. The conference has 177 exhibitors this year. Lathim said the conference hopes to draw 2,000 people, about the same number as last year. Attendees come from the Northwest, elsewhere in the U.S. and Canada, and from nations such as Brazil and China. More