The biscuit scientists: they bake 2 million of them every day

challenges that can only be met through science and innovation: just think that it takes 1 to 5 years of work to design a new bakery product. And just to give a new biscuit the desired shape by combining mixtures of different flours - wholemeal and chocolate - it took 6 months of production trials.

“It is true that we make biscuits, but every product that comes to life here is the result of a technological process that we have standardised and optimised over time,” says Chiara Cremonesi, Quality and Technology Manager Plant Barilla in Novara. “The scientific approach helps us to drive change, to find creative solutions, to eliminate the classic ‘we have always done things this way’, demonstrating that things can also be done differently. Women are playing an increasingly active role and a woman developing in science is no longer the exception as in the past”.

“In the company we have machines that have been designed by female engineers, products conceived by female colleagues in Research & Development, and also in the plant we have female managers and operators,” says Federica Massari, Director Plant Barilla in Novara. ‘This is, in my opinion, an example of how skills and competences win out over gender differences’.

The historic biscuit factory, an icon of the Italian bakery born 70 years ago and with strong roots in the territory, bake 55,000 tonnes of biscuits a year that arrive in the homes of millions of Italian families every day, including the iconic Mulino Bianco Abbracci, Baiocchi and Pavesini biscuits, but also the more recent Cioccograno, Nascondini and Cuor di Mela, not forgetting the crackers prepared with sourdough. A long history in the name of quality, taste, safety... and science, particularly that studied and applied by women. Among Barilla’s 300 employees at the Novara plant, women scientists - engineers, food technology and research and development experts - are engaged daily in optimising production processes, designing new recipes and improving existing ones, selecting safe, quality ingredients through strict supply chain controls on raw materials, packaging materials and the finished product.

Special relevance is given to nutritional aspects and ingredient’s quality, to obtain products that respects people’s wellbeing (reducing salt, sugar and saturated fats, without sacrificing taste). With