Fritz Bleidung strolled Munich’s miles of aisles for the best of the best
Lifestyle and health-oriented bakery products were clearly the main theme at IBA this year. Products included cholesterol-lowering bread, organic products, functional foods, “green” labels, and fitness bread. Even aloe vera is now used as a bakery ingredient.
For retail, total freshness is the emphasis. Baking in front of the customer and delivering hot bakery products is the key to successful bakery merchandising. The development of a retail oven that senses when the display bins are empty, and automatically begins to bake replacements, offers the ultimate in merchandising and immediate freshness to today’s demanding consumer.
Changes in the areas of food safety have taken place. As of January 2006, all food processors, including bakeries, intending to do business in the EU market, had to become HACCP compliant. This new development has influenced product labelling, product development, equipment design, the use of cleaning chemicals, even the type of building materials and bakery layouts.
New oven bakes on demand (Pictured Left)
Oven manufacturers, Wiesheu and Werner and Pfleiderer, have engineered the fully automatic sensor retail oven. The oven produces fresh bakery products throughout the day. Customers can actually watch the product being baked and automatically dispensed into empty display bins. The oven can be pre-loaded with 600 pre-baked rolls or 180 pre-baked baguettes (Wiesheu). The computerized oven senses when the display bins are empty and starts the baking process. Once the product is baked, it is transported via a conveyor system into the empty display bins. This technology has a great future in busy stores with high customer counts and few qualified personnel.
Bio trends in Europe
The Bio trend in the baking industry continues to grow. The current Bio product market accounts for 8 to 10 per cent of the total market. Ingredient suppliers and bakeries aim to achieve 18 to 20 per cent within the next few years. Prices for Bio products command a 30 per cent premium compared to bakery products made from regular flour.
Plastic cutting blades
Instead of using knives or blade tools to score your breads, a new alternative is available from the French company, Mure & Peyrot. Their safe plastic blade can help bakers avoid injury.
Software programs protect contents
Koma, manufacturer of coolers and blast freezers, offers an online teleguard service. All equipment they sell can be monitored via a software program and telephone line. The system can monitor temperature changes, equipment breakdown, system pressure, broken fuses, and fan motors, etc. The system is able to produce temperature reports to satisfy HACCP prerequisite requirements.
Revolutionary Metal (Pictured Left)
Greasing or oiling baking pans has always been labour intensive, messy, and has increased the fat content in bakery products. With the development of a new metal (EverBake, a product from the Netherlands), the bakery product does not stick to baking pans or cake tins. The non-stick qualities are due to a revolutionary metal that repels the baked product, making the use of release agents such as oil and grease redundant. The new metal improves heat transfer, is light in weight, and is suitable for all types of ovens.
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