In today’s ever-evolving bakery landscape, manufacturers are navigating unprecedented challenges. As consumers seek increasingly cleaner labels, the demand for affordability and great taste remains crucial.

So, how can you craft products that not only delight consumers with sensorial experiences but also align with affordability and nutrition requirements?

In this article, we’ll answer the most pressing questions of today’s baked goods manufacturers, while sharing the key to creating cost-effective and delicious products that thrive in the current competitive market.

Cost effective solutions for an ever-changing consumer market

The rising cost of living is causing consumers to be more conscious of their spending. However, they may still be willing to pay a slight premium for bakery products that evoke feelings of comfort and nostalgia or offer additional health or sustainability benefits. The challenge for manufacturers is to ensure that their brands provide the appropriate value.

Tailored systems can be used to create premium but affordable options across a range of bread products. For example, in high-fat products like brioche, a tailored blend of softening enzymes from our POWERFRESH® or POWERSOFT® lines and emulsifiers from our PANODAN® and hydrocolloids can be used. This will improve texture and restore an authentic, buttery taste when reducing butter or fat content. We can further add premium inclusions and work with emulsifiers to balance formulation and decrease dependence on butter which is subject to price volatility. 

Similarly, for frozen dough applications, a blend of emulsifiers, enzymes and hydrocolloids ensures excellent volume and stability during prolonged freezer storage, ensuring a high-quality product when consumers bake it at home.

A broad portfolio that includes emulsifiers and systems blends, IFF PRODUCT DESIGN™ ─ an in-house total formulation approach, and production expertise with insights-driven innovation enables IFF to be an essential partner for bakery brands especially when affordability matters the most.

Functionality & Technical Expertise

At IFF, we leverage on hands-on experience and cutting-edge ingredients to design recipes that match and surpass what consumers want. It can be confusing to know what ingredients are best for YOUR product. We start by discussing your goals, help guide you in the right direction andwhat that will look like for your specific formulation. For instance, we can add soluble fibers to traditional white bread to create a high-fiber version with a nutritional boost without changing its taste or texture.

Nutrition targets, such as X net carbs or gluten free, however can be complex and difficult. These targets are application-dependent and comprise a substantial amount of synergistic ingredients to optimize the manufacturing of these products while meeting the nutritional goals. A close partnership with ingredient suppliers who have deep R&D expertise and strong application know-how will help manufacturers to improve and meet the nutrition targets that meet consumer demand. IFF has a vast portfolio that can help our customers with these nutritional improvements.

For emulsification in baked goods, IFF offers both emulsifiers and enzymes. While each of these solutions work well individually, they are a powerhouse when used together and can transform your baked goods from good to great. The combination of both enzymes from our POWERFRESH® line and emulsifiers from our PANODAN® line in a finished product can yield excellent results, offering a range of benefits including enhanced dough stability, bread volume texture, and softness along with ensuring consistent production.

Source: IFF

Notably, tailored blends with emulsifiers such as PANODAN® and DIMODAN® can deliver easy-to-handle dough with exceptional baking properties. The end result is a softer, fresher bread crumb that minimizes waste and provides an overall more resilient bread structure which reduces the risk of damage during handling. This not only benefits you but is also beneficial to YOUR customers as well. With products staying fresher for longer and delivering more desirable eating experiences, you will gain higher customer satisfaction and fewer returns.

Keeping bread soft and fresh for a longer period is crucial in reducing food waste and balancing costs. Bakery brands that can meet consumers’ expectations for longer shelf life are rewarded with valuable repeat sales. 

IFF’s GUARDIAN® technology, a range of innovative plant-based antioxidants and flavorings, helps to improve the overall taste, flavor, and color of bakery products, and at the same time protect them against rancidity and off-notes throughout the shelf-life. While meeting consumer demand for cleaner labels, they also help manage processing costs, reduce food waste and product returns, and reach sustainability goals.

Our extensive portfolio of emulsifiers, flavors and food protection solutions are specifically designed to maintain freshness without impacting taste. They can effectively reduce stale product returns from retail outlets and allow bakers to save on transport costs by making fewer larger deliveries to each store.

From a consumer perspective, this is also beneficial because they can enjoy fresher products with the desired sensory experience for a longer period of time.

IFF: Your Partner in Bakery Innovation

At IFF, our collaborative process begins with an in-depth exploration of your distinct challenges, along with the consumer and regulatory landscapes impacting your product. 

Instead of providing off-the-shelf solutions, we customize our offerings to match your exact requirements, leveraging our end-to-end portfolio including emulsifiers, flavor modulation, food protection among others. 

To achieve your affordability goals, we harness our expertise and a diverse range of ingredients to optimize baking formulations while maintaining product freshness. Our capabilities span a broad spectrum of affordable premium solutions that include protein, fiber, and fruits, as well as gluten-free ingredients. Additionally, we can help reduce sugar, salt, and fat content while creating flavors that help your product thrive in the market. 

Building on our strong heritage of bakery innovation IFF delivers a wide range of versatile solutions to help bakers thrive despite uncertain times.

We customize our offerings to match your unique requirements leveraging on our end-to-end portfolio that extends far beyond emulsifiers and enzymes. Since we produce most of our ingredients and have rigorous quality control measures in place, we’re extremely well equipped to understand how these ingredients interact in a formulation.

Are you ready to raise the game with IFF? Learn more here: Raise the Game in bakery with IFF

Source: IFF