Bakery ingredient companies are driving innovation in the product development phase. The end result? Higher quality products with greater consistency.

At Corbion, Ashley Beech, bakery applications development manager, explains that “clean label is still our No. 1 ask.”

The health and wellness trend continues to migrate through all facets of life, driving demand for products that assist with brain function and stress support, for example. In turn, bakery product developers are seeking ingredient solutions.

“We are removing some of these chemical dough conditioners and finding clean label alternatives,” Beech explains. “We really see continued growth for the health and wellness trend. People want products that offer more health benefits such as fiber and heart healthy. This is driving demand for a lot more data for functional health. It is here to stay – definitely.”

The marketplace is also witnessing growing concerns from retailers about sustainability and environmental impact, she points out.

Such factors are driving demand for sustainably sourced palm oils and cage-free eggs, for example, and packaging that offers more recyclability and is eco-friendly and ethically sourced.

The marketplace, thus, requires solutions that are cost effective and offer balanced eating quality.

“What is great about Corbion is that we work with multiple suppliers. We have a huge toolbox – with the latest and greatest technology access,” Beech offers. “We have a group of scientists that use the newest technology in enzyme, ingredient and leavening systems to create custom blends for customers’ shelf life and eating quality needs.”

Corbion takes innovation a step further by examining cost-savings solutions. “We are currently investigating cake bases that could be used for not just cakes,” Beech says. “We are researching flavor optimization. We have a toolbox of flavors and taste modulators that we can work with. We are also working on blends to meet eating-quality and shelf-life needs – blends to meet all those texture buckets.”

“We love the creativity in that way of thinking. It is great for our team to use that innovation to develop out-of-the-box ideas.”

And finally, Corbion can work with customers to decrease costs. Solutions such as egg extenders and egg replacers help bakers manage ingredient costs.

“Cost is still a big driver,” Beech explains. “Corbion works with our customers to figure out cost-effective solutions.”

Corbion is the global market leader in lactic acid and its derivatives, and a leading supplier of food preservation solutions, functional blends, and algae ingredients. Corbion uses its unique expertise in fermentation and other processes to deliver sustainable solutions for the preservation of food and food production, health, and our planet.

Recently, Corbion, announced that it is further elevating two outstanding leaders to accelerate growth in its North American bakery division. Todd Oelschlager has been promoted to vice president of bakery sales, North America, while Jeff Stephens has been appointed senior director of bakery sales, North America.

Oelschlager has been a dedicated Corbion team member for 10 years, consistently driving customer successes and playing a pivotal role in the company’s expansion within the bakery market. As vice president of bakery sales, North America, he oversees bakery sales and technical service teams, bringing strategic acumen, experience and extensive market insight to the role.

Stephens, with more than 25 years of industry experience (including three years at Corbion), has contributed significantly to the strength of the company’s bakery and milling teams, providing both leadership and a deeply sophisticated understanding of industry challenges. As the senior director of bakery sales, North America, he focuses these abilities toward further enhancing Corbion’s standing and future growth in the segment.

The appointments underscore Corbion's commitment to nurturing talent within the company and driving growth, innovation and sustainability in the region’s bakery sector.

Innovation

Growth through innovation remains paramount to the mission of those involved in the baking industry.

Fermentation is a vitally important topic, and leaders such as Lesaffre are bringing innovation to the forefront.

For instance, bakers know that the higher the sugar content, the longer the fermentation time. Sugar pulls water away from yeast, slowing its ability to ferment.

To counteract this issue, osmotolerant yeasts are more suitable for formulations that can put strain on yeast fermentation. High-sugar doughs, with sugar levels up to 30%, are well suited for osmotolerant yeasts like Saf-Instant® Gold from Lesaffre. This option is still suitable for products with sugar levels as low as 4%, giving you more flexibility to use one yeast type for multiple products.

Other innovations involve acquisitions. In July 2024, Exter and Lallemand announced the launch of a strategic North American focused joint venture. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in the pursuit of delivering unparalleled taste experiences through the development of culinary flavor technologies.

Trading as Exter North America Inc., this joint venture unites the expertise and resources of Exter and Lallemand to create a dynamic synergy that will bring value to the North American food industry. Leveraging each other’s strengths, the collaboration aims to introduce innovative reaction flavors that will redefine consumer expectations and raise the standards for sensory delight.

“The Exter North America joint venture aligns seamlessly with Exter’s long-term strategy, emphasizing regionalization and the expansion of our geographical footprint. Together, we are poised to create unparalleled tastes, bringing us closer to customers and realizing our vision for a flavorful future,” commented John Bruggink, general director of Exter.

Lars Asferg, president of Lallemand Bio-Ingredients, pointed out that Lallemand is focused on developing innovative solutions using its leading yeast technology platform. “Our well-established presence in North America will enable our joint venture to craft solutions specifically tailored for the targeted markets, thereby meeting both industry and consumer expectations,” Asferg said.

Exter, a privately owned company with nearly a century of expertise, is dedicated to creating traditional oven-cooked savory flavors and ingredients.

Lallemand Inc. is a family-owned business headquartered in Canada, whose focus is on the development, production and marketing of yeast, bacteria, fungi and enzyme solutions.

Bolstering its portfolio, Lallemand Inc. recently acquired the CerealTech Pte Ltd. bakery ingredients business from its founding and investor shareholders. Lallemand will integrate the business and associated employees into Lallemand Baking Solutions (LBS).

“I believe that the combination of CerealTech experience, passion and commitment to the baking industry, with Lallemand’s own ingredients portfolio, industrial application knowledge and innovation capabilities, will benefit our respective customers,” said Mario Pires, president and general manager of LBS. “As such, together, we will be even better placed to meet our customers’ requirements. We see the capabilities of the CerealTech team, its baking application know-how, its geographical footprint and its strong brand recognition as very complementary to our current business and a strong foundation for LBS growth in these regions.”

CerealTech will continue to operate from Singapore under its existing branding and with its current operations and commercial teams.

“CerealTech is looking forward to being part of the Lallemand family as this will give us even better innovation capabilities to serve the baking industry, strengthening our established foundation in the markets we operate,” said Foo Ko Kin, founder and chief executive officer of CerealTech.

Strengthening offerings

Bay State Milling, one of the largest family-owned, privately held milling companies in the United States, is proud to announce the addition of Bay State Milling Montana to its portfolio. This acquisition strengthens the company’s offerings of trusted, innovative food ingredients and is part of a strategic realignment that now includes 13 milling and processing facilities across the U.S. and Canada. 

Walker Humphries, the newly appointed senior vice president and general manager of Oat Milling, will oversee the Montana facility. “We are thrilled to welcome Montana Gluten Free to the Bay State Milling family,” said Humphries. “This investment reflects our ongoing commitment to offering trusted, natural ingredients while connecting more closely with communities in this region.”

Bay State Milling assumes full ownership of the facility after partnering with Montana Gluten Free for several years. The Montana facility handles SowNaked® Mindfully Farmed Oats, a unique variety of non-GMO hulless oats with 40% more protein than traditional oats. Grown and processed according to gluten-free Purity Protocol, these oats are handled in a specialized supply chain to ensure less than five parts per million (ppm) of gluten—far below the FDA’s threshold of 20 ppm and the Gluten-Free Certification Organization’s standard of 10 ppm.

“This acquisition unlocks the next phase of growth for one of our most unique product lines,” said Ed Fish, senior vice president of varietal solutions whose team is responsible for identifying, developing and commercializing innovative crops for Bay State Milling, like SowNaked Oats. “We’re expanding our capacity for high-protein, gluten-free oats that adhere to the strictest standards— a key differentiator for our customers and their products. These oats also deliver exceptional taste and nutrition with a fraction of the environmental impact.” 

Because this variety naturally lacks hulls – the outer shell of the oat plant – it requires less energy to process, resulting in 50% lower carbon emissions compared to traditional oats. Available as groats, flakes and flour, SowNaked Oats are used by Bay State Milling customers to produce nutritious, clean-label, and environmentally friendly gluten-free products like oatmeal, granola, bars, cereals, oat milk and baking mixes.

For 125 years, Bay State Milling has been on a mission to increase access to nutritious, sustainable and accessible grain-based ingredients. As the largest privately held, family-owned miller in the United States, Bay State Milling operates 13 locations in the U.S. and Canada. The company’s broad portfolio of traditional and gluten-free flours, grains, seeds, mixes and blends are responsibly sourced and expertly processed to meet exacting specifications.

Flour milling

Grain Craft, the largest independent flour miller in the nation, is making headlines with the recent announcement that they have closed on an acquisition partnership with Utah-based Central Milling, Inc. The agreement includes three flour mills located in Logan, Richmond, and Collinston, Utah along with the Central Milling corporate office, and associated trademarks.

“Since the creation of Grain Craft, we have diligently looked for businesses that align with our vision,” said Pete Frederick, president and chief executive officer of Grain Craft. “This new partnership with Central Milling is a natural fit, and we believe that our two businesses will be better together moving forward.”

Central Milling is one of the largest organic flour suppliers in the United States. The company has been milling flour for more than 150 years with an organic focus dating back to the 1960’s. They carry a wide range of organic artisan baking flours, organic specialty flours, and organic whole grains.  They also mill their heritage brand, Red Rose, which has been a Central Milling signature wheat flour since 1919.

“I am proud of the legacy my father, George Perry, established,” said Lynn Perry, president of Central Milling.  “His vision of chemical-free farming and quality artisan flours, along with our deep relationship with the Giusto family, has been instrumental in building our business and fulfilling our mission of greater connection between the farmer, miller and baker.”   

The Central Milling leadership team and all their team members will continue operating the Central Milling business. The company currently employs over 90 team members.

“Our team members’ dedication has also been critical to our success, and we are excited for the many opportunities our new partnership with Grain Craft will bring to everyone at Central Milling,” said Perry. “Grain Craft supports us in broadening our presence while still prioritizing the farmer’s quality focus and the baker’s artisan goals.”

“Central Milling has a robust business firmly in place, from outstanding relationships with blue-chip customers to a dedicated team with extensive experience in organic flour milling,” said Frederick.  “We view this acquisition as an opportunity to partner together, and Grain Craft is committed to supporting Central Milling by bringing relationships, resources and knowledge to an already great business.”

Expansion

Batory Foods, a national distributor of food and fine ingredients, has announced the expansion of its Wilmington, Illinois, facility with the addition of a new Batory Foods Innovation Center. The 16,000 square-foot space includes a dedicated upstairs lab area and a blending facility, significantly enhancing the company’s capabilities in applications development, custom blending and packaging services.

Batory Foods hosted a ribbon-cutting event on Sept. 12 to mark this milestone, providing customers and vendors with an experiential tour of the newly upgraded site.

Batory’s Wilmington facility underwent substantial upgrades to accommodate the new lab and blending spaces, which offer a range of high-value services, including testing, one-pack solution creation, sourcing well-researched ingredients, and comprehensive documentation. Additionally, the site also allows for advanced blending capabilities, including micro dosing and custom labeling, allowing Batory Foods to deliver tailored solutions to meet customer needs.

As part of this expansion, Batory Foods has made a substantial investment in technical talent, welcoming a new R&D team with over 40 years of cumulative food science experience. The team’s expertise spans various fields, including research and development, quality assurance, safety, and operations.

“The new lab and blending capabilities at our Wilmington facility represent our ongoing commitment to innovation and service excellence. This expansion allows us to enhance our technical and solution-based acumen, delivering even greater value to our customers and partners,” said Jessica Zielinski, vice president of strategic growth and marketing at Batory Foods. “The Wilmington site is designed to be a dynamic, evolving space that will continue to adapt to the needs of the product categories we serve, such as beverages, confectionery, bakery, and nutrition."

Founded in 1979, Batory Foods is a broad line distributor of high-quality food ingredients serving food, beverage, and nutritional manufacturers throughout the United States. The company connects leading food ingredient producers to well-regarded food & beverage brands. Batory operates a national system of warehouses and distribution centers for quick and efficient product delivery.

Distribution partnership

EQUII has announced a groundbreaking manufacturing and distribution partnership with Bridor, the esteemed French baking company, marking a significant step in elevating the quality and nutrition of bakery products.

EQUII's partnership with Bridor will bring protein-packed products to food service industry consumers nationwide.

EQUII will supply Bridor with its premium protein-packed yeast flour, a revolutionary ingredient known for its complete protein profile, containing all nine essential amino acids. Bridor will utilize this flour to create a diverse range of baked goods, including dinner rolls, sandwich carriers, artisan loaves, sliced bread for sandwiches, French toast, and assorted offerings. These offerings will be available to Bridor's broad network of food service industry clients across North America, including hotel groups, restaurants, bars, c-stores, in-store bakeries, retailers, coffee shops, airlines, cruise lines, retirement homes, hospitals, army bases, schools and more.

With cutting-edge science and innovation in fermentation, EQUII has created high-protein grain flours packed with complete protein. The brand launched its flagship bread varieties last year, which provide between 8g - 10g of protein per serving, with 30% less carbs.

"We are excited to partner with Bridor, a company that shares our commitment to quality and innovation," said Baljit Ghotra, co-founder of EQUII. "This partnership will allow us to bring the benefits of yeast protein to a broader audience, offering delicious and nutritious options to bakeries and restaurant operators."

Bridor's expertise in creating premium bakery products, combined with EQUII's innovative yeast protein flour, promises to deliver an unparalleled experience to consumers seeking both taste and nutrition. The collaboration aims to meet the growing demand for high-protein, plant-based foods without compromising on flavor.

"For the first time in our company's history, we are selling protein-packed products," said Eric Juillet de Saint-Lager, chief executive officer of Bridor. "This collaboration with EQUII allows us to enhance our product offerings with high-quality, complete protein, meeting the evolving needs of our customers."

Founded in 2021 by accomplished food scientists Monica Bhatia Ph.D and Baljit Ghotra Ph.D, EQUII's mission is to redefine what is expected of pantry staples, creating the world's first complete protein flour using fermentation. EQUII's products are designed to provide superior nutrition without compromising on flavor, making them a delicious choice for health-conscious individuals and those seeking a balanced diet. EQUII's complete protein bread and pasta feature simple ingredient lists with no artificial flavors, preservatives, or chemicals.

Leading French manufacturer of premium frozen bakery products (bread, Viennese pastries), Bridor, a subsidiary of Le Duff Group, has combined large-scale manufacturing strength with the virtuosity of bakery expertise for 30 years. From its various production sites around the world, the company creates superior-quality products inspired by the bakery cultures of the world for hotel, catering, and retail professionals.