Baking innovation on display in Milan

Milan, Italy – Booth after booth at the HostMilano show is making the connection between labour-saving technologies and how they can make life easier for hard-working bakers.

The 40th edition of the show this week welcomes more than 2,000 companies from 52 countries. Twenty halls dedicated to pastry, gelato, bread, pizza, pasta, coffee, tea, vending and tableware teem with inspiration and ideas that made clear technology has a lot to offer even the most artisanal bakery.

Mainstays of the trade-show floor include high-tech ovens designed to make shift changes smoother by giving staff various baking programs to activate. Unox’s BakerLux and BakerTop models are examples of this strong trend. Their innovative features include metal alloy plates that help the ovens retain the moisture needed in so many pastry applications.

Gelato is a force to be reckoned with in Italy, and at least a dozen exhibitors have mixes available for sampling in colourful, crowd-drawing cases that prove we do indeed “eat with our eyes.” Among these are Rubicone, whose Spiral Blue gelato, naturally flavoured with spirulina, is prompting lineups at the tasting counter; and PreGel, who in addition to highlighting Halloween and other themed gelato formulations has expanded into a highly customizable “New Cookie Idea” that can hold fillings of various textures.

Complementing all this innovation on the show floor are the World Trophy of Pastry, Ice Cream and Chocolate competition; cake designer world championships; and sugarcraft and sculpting demonstrations in the well-trod pastry hall.

Watch for more coverage of HostMilano in the January/February issue of Bakers Journal.