The Society for Industrial Microbiology (SIM) held its Annual Meeting in Chicago on August 21–25, 2005. The meeting had a strong focus on the topics of Fermentation, Metabolic Engineering, Biocatalysis, Bioremediation, and Natural Products. There were many excellent presentations in the sessions, special lectures and roundtable discussions that are of interest to members of SIM and to others who read the Journal of Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (JIM&B). To capture the content of the meeting for a broader audience, the speakers and session chairs were invited to submit mini-reviews or full manuscripts to JIM&B for this Special Topics Issue on Highlights of the Annual Meeting of SIM.