The American Bakers Association (ABA) and Sosland Publishing Co. will host a webinar on the business impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on the baking industry on Tuesday, Feb. 9, from 2 to 2:45 p.m. ET. The webinar will be moderated by Charlotte Atchley, editor of Baking & Snack magazine and is sponsored by Lesaffre and Red Star Yeast Co.

Marjorie Hellmer, president of Cypress Research, will be highlighting trends found from a series of pulse surveys conducted by Cypress Research in March, at the beginning of the pandemic; June, and in December.

Ms. Hellmer said the research being presented will focus on the impact of COVID-19 on businesses, supply chain and other pandemic-related business issues.

By late 2020, about 25% of bakers continued to anticipate a decrease in production long term as a result of the pandemic,” she said. “I think that’s a reflection of the vulnerability and weakness within particular channels that bakers sell their products to.”

The previous surveys asked respondents to report on key matters such as their perceptions of how the pandemic would affect their production, sales, equipment supply chain and availability of operations staff.

The surveys monitored the outlook of the industry as it shifted from March to June. In March, 35% of respondents reported being uncertain of the impacts the outbreak would have on their production. Twenty percent predicted the impact would be negative.

The second phase of the survey conveyed a fresh surge of positivity, with expectations for increased production rising from 36% to 44%. In June, fewer bakers reported uncertainty toward the long-term effects of the pandemic by 9%, and a larger percentage reported an expectation for no change in production from the first phase of the survey.

The webinar, “Baking Industry COVID-19 Pulse Survey Preview: Evaluating the Business Impact and Implications,” will go into detail on the research presented in the newest pulse survey, and will serve as a teaser for the ABA’s upcoming convention in late March, which Ms. Hellmer said would, “dive into these findings and issues that have surfaced because of these findings.”

Registration for the webinar is free, and can be done at the registration website.