Baking&Snack - March 2013 - 114

MEETING PREVIEW

One-Stop Shopping
By incorporating pizza and other new market segments,
IBIE meets the needs of the baking industry in its entirety.
by Charlotte Atchley

Show organizers plan a broad spectrum experience for visitors to the
2013 International Baking Industry
Exposition (IBIE) to be held Oct.
6-9 at the Las Vegas Convention
Center. They’ve added pizza, food
safety/sanitation, tortillas, transportation, packaging, coffee and confectionary to the event. The reason?
To maximize its potential value to
attendees and exhibitors alike.
“The baking industry crosses over
into many vertical and horizontal
markets, and like many industries,
companies are innovating and diversifying their product lines,” said Michael
A. Beaty, chairman of the IBIE
Committee and executive vice-president of supply chain, Flowers Foods,
Thomasville, GA. “On the wholesale
side, we’re seeing more innovative ingredients and packaging. I think our
show is usually ahead of the industry,
so participants can get a glimpse of
where the industry is headed.”
Attendees will be able to shop and
compare the new technologies that
have come on the market since IBIE
last convened in 2010. Then they can
return to their businesses with new
resources and knowledge to help
them grow and become more efficient.

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Those at the show will be able to immerse themselves in expanded education programs and additional show
floor features providing timely information and best practices for bakers.
“These new areas are aimed to
serve attendees better,” said Rosalio
Rodriguez,
IBIE
Committee
member and chief of operations
for Grupo Bimbo, Mexico City.
“Everything from the design and
content of the education program,
attracting international participants,
new vendors coming to the show
and the way in which all the associations are coming together are going
to give attendees a better overview
of what’s available and help facilitate
the learning process.”
The Tortilla Industry Association
(TIA) is co-locating its technical
seminar with IBIE for the second
time, giving tortilla producers an
opportunity to meet all of their
show needs in one place. In 2010,
attendance at the technical seminar
doubled compared with non-IBIE
years, and half of the participants
were new to TIA events, according
to Jim Kabbani, CEO of TIA. With
IBIE access included in the technical
seminar’s registration, its attendees

Jon Lasecki, chief engineer, Ashworth Bros., presents
at the 2010 TIA Technical Conference, co-located with
IBIE. With tortillas continuing to grow in marketplace
importance, TIA expects that holding its annual meeting in 2013 side-by-side with IBIE will provide even
more opportunities for tortilla producers.
IBIE

also get exposure to the hundreds of
vendors and displays at IBIE. “TIA
members gain networking opportunities to make connections with
those interested in tortillas but may
not have the capabilities to produce
them,” Mr. Kabbani said.
Noting the higher profile of tortillas at IBIE 2010, Mr. Kabbani said
he expects that awareness of the
segment and its opportunities has
grown even more during the past
three years.
With more comprehensive programs, exhibits, seminars and networking opportunities, IBIE opens
the door to everyone in the baking
industry. Tortilla producers, pizza
makers, confectioners and even coffee businesses can make inroads and
gain new ground on the IBIE 2013
show floor. Such a broad spectrum
of interests makes Baking Expo
truly a one-stop shop for the entire
industry — and beyond.

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