With thousands of retailers, wholesalers and suppliers set to attend FMI 2010 in Las Vegas this May, the Food Marketing Institute has revealed sessions and exhibits that will take place at the annual event, long considered the signature education and exhibit event for the food industry.

“FMI 2010 creates opportunities and connections that energize associates and bring value to grocery stores worldwide,” observed FMI president and CEO Leslie G. Sarasin. “Educational workshops and exhibits will focus on the key issues critical to business success to ensure the vitality of our industry as well as to improve our understanding of today’s — and tomorrow’s — customer.”

More than 400 exhibiting companies representing a wide variety of suppliers, among them minority- and women-owned businesses, will display new products, services and solutions, and attendees will learn valuable ways to improve retail merchandising strategies and gain fresh insight into store operations.

International attendees will be able to follow General Sessions translated into Chinese, French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish. Additionally, FMI’s first-ever Supermarket Health & Wellness Conference will be held in conjunction with FMI 2010. Although separate registration is required for the conference, attendees receive the value-added bonus of full access to FMI 2010.

Scheduled speakers are Dr. Stephen R. Covey, author of “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and “The 8th Habit,” whose talk is titled “Leadership for the 21st Century — Understand the Forces of Change to Inspire Innovation” and blind athlete Erik Weihenmayer, who will discuss “Using Adversity to Advantage.”

The latest industry and consumer trend research will take center stage during Speaks 2010: Consumer and Industry Insight — A Future Perspective, scheduled for Tuesday, May 11. This annual look at the food industry will probe key trends and emerging issues affecting the industry, the economy and customer shopping habits.

The educational workshops on offer at this year’s event will follow six distinct paths: Future Connect/Leadership Development, Consumer Trends: The Next Evolution of Shopper Behavior, Technology-enabled Business Solutions, Sustainability, Private Brands, and Health and Wellness.

Session highlights include Leadership: Traits of Winning Partnerships; Sustainability: Be Prepared for the Opportunity and Risks of Emerging Environmentally Driven Changes in Packaging and Waste Management; Private Brands: Charting the Growth in Private Label; Health and Wellness: Building Health and Wellness Through Ethnic Marketing Programs; Technology: Shopper Centric Assortment — How Technology Solutions Can Help You Make the Right Decisions; and Consumer Trends: The Moment We Buy — How Consumers Make In-Store Purchase Decisions

Additional features of FMI 2010 will be the Customer Innovation Zone, where presentations will enable retailers and wholesalers to learn from top consumer products and service provider companies about cutting-edge consumer research, innovative marketing and merchandising strategies, product innovation, and category development programs, among other topics; the New Product Showcase, where attendees can find the latest trends in packaged products, equipment and services; the Store Manager Awards program, which will highlight three finalists chosen from each of the Small Retailers, Medium Retailers and Large Retailers categories, with a single grand-prize winner selected from each category; and the Group Advantage Program, which allows retailer and wholesaler groups bringing 10 or more team members to receive discounted group registration rates.