IBIE 2016
This year's International Baking Industry Exposition is expected to break the mold for what anybody in the baking industry has encountered in the past.

For the International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE) Committee, creating this year’s show has required dozens of meetings, countless conference calls, hundreds of hours of brainstorming and an indefatigable pursuit of a strategic goal to transform the triennial trade show into an “experience.” Yes, that’s the term the committee uses to describe this year’s event, expected to break the mold for what anybody in the baking industry has encountered in the past.

In addition to many of the interactive programs and the opening day “All American Tailgate Party” to promote networking, even some of the education sessions feature “out of the box” thinking, so to speak, compared with previous IBIE shows. Take “The Future of Wholesale Baking with Marijuana,” where you can hear from Sweet Grass Kitchen and Love's Oven, two wholesale bakers that provide a large portion of baked marijuana edibles to Colorado and other areas where it is currently legal.

In the past, show organizers would be blowing smoke if they even suggested such a seminar, but this thought provoking session, part of the American Bakers Association program, shows how society as a whole has changed since the last IBIE three years ago. It also provides a breath of fresh air as to how IBIE 2016 is exploring topics that might otherwise be considered taboo.

For more on this year’s main event, which runs Oct. 8-11 in Las Vegas, check out www.IBIE2016.com. Oh, by the way, the previously mentioned session is on Saturday, Oct. 8, from 9:45-10:30 a.m., so don’t forget to register in advance. And upload the IBIE app, which will provide you a reminder on this totally new experience.