CHESTERFIELD, MO. — Michael Tamayo has joined AB Mauri North America as senior business development manager – tortillas. He will lead the company’s tortilla sales and innovation strategy and foster relationships with new tortilla customers.

Mr. Tamayo has more than 30 years of experience in the baking industry, starting in high school when his family established La Tortilla Factory in Santa Rosa, Calif. He worked there until 2008. In 2009, Mr. Tamayo and his wife opened Sonoma Latina Grill, a Mexican restaurant in Novata, Calif., that focused on natural and organic ingredients. Most recently he was a bakery consultant and the director of R.&D. for Mi Rancho Tortilla Factory in San Leandro, Calif.

“Tamayo is a natural fit for this position having worked on all sides of the tortilla business,” said Gregory Strauss, vice-president of sales and business development for Chesterfield-based AB Mauri North America, a supplier of yeast and bakery ingredient products. “He’s developed new formulas, worked closely with some of the largest branded restaurants in the U.S., and knows what it takes to run a bakery successfully. As an entrepreneur, he is able to empathize with our customers, understanding their unique challenges and working determinedly to advance their businesses.”

Mr. Tamayo said, “I’m enthusiastic to be supporting AB Mauri North America by keeping the company in the forefront of tortilla trends and continuing the company’s excellent customer service. Having spent more than 30 years in the baking industry, I feel like I’ve been training my whole life for this role as it gives me the opportunity to share my passion for baking tortillas with tortilla manufacturers all across North America.”