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In this issue, we honor our 2007 innovators, companies that stand out in the crowd by taking a unique approach to solving common problems that are typical in today's operations.

These 10 organizations have figured out ways to overcome supply chain challenges, or offer exciting services or design equipment that makes life a little bit easier in the distribution center. This special section starts on page 18 with a story about Schneider National's new intermodal service between the United States and Mexico.

Our other innovators include:

• Buffalo Rock;
• Kenworth Truck Co.;
• Hyperactive Technologies;
• Beyond Products Inc.;
• Univeyor;
• Stonyfield Farm;
• Stonewall Kitchen;
• Rich Products; and
• Gebhardt Transport and Storage Systems.

Also, this month we feature an update on the progress of data synchronization in the food supply chain. Turns out, there has been a great deal of advancement made over the past few years, with companies such as Wegmans Food Markets, Coca-Cola and Supervalu leading the way. Many companies have made great strides in improving the accuracy of data with their trading partners, and are now using it to improve internal business processes, such as new product development.

"The best news is that the validation and support of this effort has been well documented and the list of companies seeing success continues to grow," says Tom Duffy of TDLinx in "What's Next For Data Sync?" [page 14]. "The market has seen the value of leveraging investments in a blend of both industry standards for trading partner collaboration and existing proprietary solutions behind firewalls to drive progress."

I'd like to take the opportunity to introduce Brian Schiavo, our new managing editor. Brian has over nine years of writing experience, including a stint as a reporter for Suffolk Life newspapers. He will be writing news and features, as well as handling editorial production. He will also be editing our e-newsletter, the Dispatch, and contributing content to our Web site. Brian can be reached at bschiavo@foodlogistics.com.