Through the years, Baking Management has strived to distinguish itself within the commercial baking industry trade press by offering new approaches and distinct media products to provide our audience with editorial content that is truly unique—both in form and functionality.

Not long ago, we introduced Baking Management Notebooks. A collaboration between our editors and leading edge suppliers, the Notebooks were designed to elaborate on important ingredient and equipment topics. The Problem Solver Guidebook addressed some of the most important R&D and production issues facing wholesale bakers and offered practical solutions that could be immediately employed. Leaders in Baking Innovation—a joint effort with sister publication Modern Baking—provides company profiles to attendees at every major baking industry conference and trade show during the course of the year. And finally, the Healthy Baking Seminar became one of the most talked about in-person events for bakers searching to capitalize on the fast-growing trend of better-for-you baked products. The success of these and others was the result of your support and interaction.

As we planned for 2010, we conducted industry research to further guide our editorial strategy. We wanted to get a better understanding of what you really valued about the Baking Management brand. More importantly, we wanted to understand what your unmet information needs were—not just relating to us, but from the full baking trade press circle. In general, you told us that you wanted more forward-looking information—while operations features were good and not to be abandoned, you wanted to get a sense of what was coming so that you could plan accordingly. Energy savings and sustainability were high in your minds. So were food safety and regulatory issues. And you wanted a glimpse inside the businesses of your customers—what drives them and what they are looking for from their bakery foods suppliers.

So throughout this year, in addition to Operation Reviews, Ingredient Technology, Equipment Focus and Production Solutions, you'll be seeing a whole slate of new topics from Baking Management, such as:

• 2010 business forecast; Top 10 trends to watch; exclusive executive industry survey

• Monthly customer development stories

• Food retail and foodservice trends

• A monthly food safety and regulatory column

Also worth noting is the manner in which we plan to deliver content to you with the growth of online usage. Like you'll see in this issue, our plan is to set the table in the pages of the print magazine and direct you to our website for more complete information and story content.

We wish you nothing but success in your businesses in 2010 and beyond, and we look forward to serving as your content and information partner in achieving your goals. Please don't hesitate to let us know what else we can do for you.