industry

On March 15, Robb MacKie, President and CEO, American Bakers Association (ABA) and Kerwin Brown, President and CEO, Baking Equipment Manufacturing Association (BEMA) shared the impacts of COVID-19 on consumers, bakers and suppliers and their predictions for a thriving U.S. commercial baking industry in 2021.

The baking industry has exhibited an incredible amount of strength and resiliency in this difficult time. As we look forward to IBIE 2022, we are all eager to come together as a community and get back to business.

On March 10, bakery and supplier members gathered to share their experiences using BEMA’s Overall Risk Assessment (ORA) tool created by the Baking Industry Forum (BIF) committee.

On Tuesday, March 9, human resources professionals met for the 2021 Q1 HR virtual roundtable. Hosted by Emily Bowers of BEMA, the panel of HR experts leading the discussion included Susan Potucek, Clif Bar & Company, and Pat Richards of Hearthside Foods with input from the roundtable participants.

BEMA's CEO, Kerwin Brown, sat down with Rick Hoskins, BEMA's 2020-2021 Chairman of the Board, to talk about his experiences as a leader and learner as well as the benefits of developing relationships throughout the baking industry.

BEMA's President and CEO, Kerwin Brown, discusses what BEMA's future entails and what that means for its members.

On Wednesday, Nov. 11, bakery and supplier members had an opportunity to discuss the challenges of risk assessment. Co-moderators for the event included Karl Thorson of General Mills, Jeremiah Tilghman of Flowers Corp., and Delia Justable of Forbo Siegling.

20/20 Hindsight and Future Opportunities at IBIE 2022 - While it could be easy to dismiss 2020 as an unfortunate year better forgotten, we can’t deny that the last 12 months have pushed the industry in ways many of us never thought possible.

It’s no secret the tradeshow industry has taken a beating in 2020. Yet there’s hope on the horizon that reduced travel restrictions, fewer cases and improving protocols could enable a resurgence in tradeshow in-person attendance as soon as Q1 or Q2 of 2021.

On Thursday, Oct. 8, BEMA gathered marketing and sales members to talk about the challenges and opportunities of marketing in a post-COVID-19 world. Co-moderators Teresa Ruder of Middleby Bakery Group, and CJ McClellan of Corbion led the roundtable.