Charlotte Atchley

WASHINGTON — SNAC International members now have access to a quarterly data dashboard giving them critical indicators about the health of the snack industry.

Whether it’s focused on the retail or commercial side, the International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE) is the largest trade show event for the grain-based food industry in the Western hemisphere, and it’s all geared toward bringing the global baking industry together to find solutions to the challenges everyone is facing. In Las Vegas, Sept. 13-17, 2025, the baking industry will overtake the Las Vegas Convention Center to attend education sessions, see the latest in equipment and ingredient technology, and network with peers.

IBIE 2025 is geared toward bringing the global baking industry together to find solutions to the challenges everyone is facing.

The International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE) is still 10 months away, so it may seem early to deliver to the industry a preview of the triennial trade show. But in my interview with Dennis Gunnell, president of Formost Fuji and former IBIE chair, he noted that some of the official hotel blocks in Las Vegas offering discounted rates for IBIE participants have already filled up.

The baking industry faces many challenges, namely a persistent shortage of skilled workers and, more recently, the rising costs of raw materials. At the International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE), held in Las Vegas, Sept. 13-17, 2025, attendees will not only network and attend education sessions to discuss these challenges, but they will also have access to the leading equipment and ingredient suppliers and other services on the trade show floor.

DAVENPORT, IOWA — Hansaloy promoted Allen Wright to the role of president, effective Dec. 1. Wright succeeds Kim Brenner in the role. Brenner will stay on at Hansaloy as executive director. The change comes after an intentional 18-month long leadership transition process.

Change can be scary, but it can also be good. A change of venue can bring a change of perspective, and new ideas can come to light. The American Society of Baking (ASB) is aiming for just that with its 2025 BakingTech Conference with a new schedule, location and conference features. BakingTech 2025 will take place Feb. 15-18, 2025, at the Renaissance Orlando Resort World at SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla. Not only is the conference changing cities for one year, but it is also returning to its Sunday-Tuesday schedule.

The Rotella family’s strong work ethic and pride in their family has driven them to grow and expand Rotella’s Italian Bakery, Omaha, Neb., to become a supplier of frozen breads and rolls to foodservice customers across the country. Two of its patriarchs were inducted into the Baking Hall of Fame, and now the fourth generation of leadership — Lou Rotella III and John Rotella — are being awarded Baking & Snack ’s Operations Executives of the Year for 2024.

Every generation of the Rotella family has taken the family’s commercial bakery, Rotella’s Italian Bakery, to the next level. The founder, Alessandro Rotella, an Italian immigrant who began his family bakery in Omaha, Neb., while on strike with Union Pacific Railroad, would not believe what his son, grandson and great-grandchildren have built upon the foundation he laid in 1921. Alessandro’s son, Lou Rotella Sr., strove to have one of the best commercial bakeries in the United States, and his grandson, Lou Rotella Jr., chief executive officer, took the company’s distribution nationwide with frozen product.

It’s always nerve-racking jumping into something new. Sometimes, however, the need is too great, and a new venture is necessary. Other times, it’s an opportunity born from the question “why?” or “why not?” The Rotella family’s latest ventures — Rotella’s Cold Storage and Ag Alchemy Animal Nutrition — both sprouted from either a need or an opportunity to do things differently. Lou Rotella III, chief operating officer, and John Rotella, general manager, of Omaha, Neb.-based Rotella’s Italian Bakery, were simply ambitious enough to try.