BevExpo 2004, Tampa by John McKenna, John Craven -  BevNET.com Editors Tampa October 1, 2004 – Hot on the heels of Hurricane Jeanne was the industry conference BevExpo, held in Tampa, Florida from September 27—October 2. Unlike its less fortunate neighbor, InterBev (Orlando, Sept. 26-28) which was nearly canceled by the storm just days before, BevExpo went off without a hitch and enjoyed strong attendance. Billed as the “largest U.S.-based beverage industry trade event devoted exclusively to distribution, production, quality control, ingredients and formulation systems, sales and marketing and technology tools for the $700 billion beverage industry”, BevExpo turned out to be a great forum for learning about the many products that contribute to the beverage industry. The tradeshow floor was open Wednesday through Friday. Of the many companies exhibiting, only a handful were actual beverage manufacturers. Better represented were machinery, transportation, flavor/chemical companies, and other industries that contribute to the beverage industry. The morning hours of Wednesday & Thursday were reserved for a number of educational sessions. Several of these featured insightful presentations by Beverage Marketing one of the shows sponsors. BevExpo’s other sponsors included: The International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) The International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) The International Association of Food Industry Suppliers (IAFIS) The show’s highlight was a presentation by Mike Weinstein, Snapple’s CEO 1997–2001. Titled  "Snap Judgements - The Snapple Story"., the speech featured Weinstein’s animated and insightful perspective on the roller coaster ride that began with Triarc’s bargain basement purchase of Snapple from Quaker Oats and subsequently profitable resale of the brand to Cadbury.