Th As consumer trends steer towards healthier options - as well as greater convenience and a focus on ethical choices - how can the bakery sector use frozen to meet these expectations without compromising on product appeal? Emma Scott looks at the evidence. Think bakery and what springs to mind? Freshly-baked bread, tempting cakes, pies, puddings, pastries. A picture of indulgence, but perhaps not the go-to section for an increasingly health-conscious consumer, which presents a problem to those in the business of baking. Information, data and measurement firm Nielsen found this year that 39% of shoppers are actively seeking snacks with less sugar and veganism shows no signs of slowing down, with 16% of all product launches now carrying a vegan label (Mintel, 2019). Meanwhile Public Health England 2020 sugar targets are looming. Baked goods free from sugar, gluten and dairy are still far from the norm but the sector is embracing innovative new product development to respond to this growing market. Emily Sudell, We Love Cake brand manager for Bells of Lazonby, says: “Brands are not only seeing this growth in demand as an opportunity to innovate and build new products, but rather an essential if they wish to maintain the status and popularity of their current lines within the market.” This is why the company took the decision to reformulate the sugar content of its We Love Cake range to future-proof it for the 2020 sugar targets. Launched in spring 2019, the company has since seen growth of 28% YOY due to the recipe reformulation. Emily adds: “This demonstrates the increasing awareness wholesalers have in offering free-from and reduced sugar products to their customers and together with the strength of sales uplift proves
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customer demand for these types of products is really pulling through.” That said, it’s vital for the sector to avoid losing sight of its own unique and unequivocal appeal – indulgence and flavour. When Jennifer LaPaugh - senior director, regional and artisanal channel marketing at Dawn Foods - spoke at the International Baking Industry Exposition in Las Vegas this year, she outlined several key emerging consumer trends. While one of these does reflect the demand for healthier baked goods, which she calls ‘enlightened eating’, at the opposite end of the spectrum is ‘blissful indulgence’, which describes how people are looking for “opportunities to disconnect and reduce stress and anxiety through personalised, highly indulgent sweet goods or desserts that provide a momentary escape from reality”. Quite the experience. This trend, she argues, is being fuelled by an uncertain political climate that’s affecting consumers directly. So the idea of baked goods being a treat is still important but in a sector in which gluten, dairy and eggs have traditionally been the main components of recipes, maintaining the feel-good factor requires some creative thinking. So what flavour trends can the bakery and convenience sectors capitalise on to keep customers coming back? Emily Sudell suggests bakery hybrids will continue to crop up, with many taking influence from across the pond: “Merging mainstream flavours and national favourites is a great way to offer something different that will still deliver on sales. We Love Cake has done a mash of a brownie and cookie as its showstopper NPD piece this year. The ‘Brookie’ has a soft-baked chocolate chip cookie base and is topped with a marbled blend of moist chocolate brownie and cookie.” November / December 2019 | 29
