SEATTLE, WA--(Marketwire - May 13, 2009) - Foodista.com, the cooking encyclopedia everyone can edit, announced today that it will offer a free, live webcast of the first-ever International Food Blogger Conference (IFBC) to be held in Seattle on May 15-17, 2009.

Bloggers, chefs, journalists and foodies from all over the world are invited to watch the conference sessions from the Web and participate in on-site discussions via chat at http://ifbc.foodista.com. Kyte.tv is providing the webcast technology. Additionally, audio and video podcasts will also be available at http://ifbc.foodista.com following the event to share key discussion points from panelists and thoughts from attendees and event sponsors.

"Food enthusiasts and culinary professionals are increasingly using different types of social media to share their experiences, from the farmer's market to the dinner table," said Barnaby Dorfman, Founder & CEO of Foodista.com. "We decided to organize the IFBC to bring food writers of all types together to discuss issues directly impacting the growth of food blogging."

Leading bloggers, authors, publishers, food producers and technologists will speak in a variety of sessions, including:

--  Blog to Book: Getting Your Writing on Paper
--  Food Porn: Food Photography & Styling
--  Building a Better Blog: Search Engine Optimization, Traffic, &
    Monetization
    

For the full conference schedule, visit http://ifbc.foodista.com/agenda.

"We couldn't be more thrilled to be the premier sponsor of this event and to be able to provide the food blogging community with a taste of what Sur La Table is all about," said Susanna Linse, Media Relations Manager for Sur La Table.

In addition to the sessions on the conference agenda, attendees -- from local foodies to bloggers from Europe -- will also be treated to a wide variety of gourmet foods and wines from leading producers and restaurants, including:

--  Brian Cartenuto, Chef of Cantinetta
--  Mark Fuller, Chef/Owner of Spring Hill
--  Keith Luce, Chef of the Herbfarm
--  Jonathan Hunt, Chef of Boom Noodle
--  Jordan Mackey, Chef of Six Seven at the Edgewater Hotel
--  Kerry Sears, Chef of ART Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel
    

Visit http://ifbc.foodista.com/sponsors for a full list of sponsors and partners.

About Foodista.com

Foodista, Inc. is a Seattle company that operates http://www.foodista.com, the online cooking encyclopedia everyone can edit. The company leverages open source software, cloud computing resources, and wisdom of the crowds to rapidly develop cooking software and content. The company is funded by private investors and Amazon.com.