The industrial production

The industrial production of bread and bakery products can be described according to the level of finishing and presentation of the products. There are four categories: Fresh – bake off wholesale – packaged long life – packaged to bake

These products reach the consumers through the following distribution channels

Notably, the bakery sector is the third largest Food production sector in Europe, after meat and dairy.

Total bakery product consumption in Europe amounts to approximately 42 million tons, valued at around €158 billion. Industrial bakery production accounts for about 70% of this total, reaching consumers through various retail and food service channels.

In this general bakery picture, the overall repartition between product types shows as follows.

The repartition of consumption of Fresh / Packaged Long Life / Packaged to bake
at consumer level vary according to the product categories.

This general picture is provided at the EU level. The share of total production varies by country, with Italy, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain, and Poland being the six largest producers. The proportion of consumption between product categories (bread, pastries, and savory items) and/or levels of processing (fresh, packaged for long-term storage, and packaged for baking) also varies between countries.

Notable variations in bread consumption patterns exist between countries in terms of amount, form (fresh, packaged long-life, or packaged to bake), and source (industrial or craft baker).

Sweden and Bulgaria are the two extremes in terms of the amount of bread consumed per person. For about 50 years, individual bread consumption decreased by about 2% per year. However, after the pandemic and consumers’ increased interest in plant-based and healthier diets, this trend has begun to reverse slightly. The average bread consumption in European countries is as follows:

The relative proportions of industrial bakeries and craft bakeries vary from country to country. France and Estonia stand as the two extremes.

However, it should be noted that the bake-off method, in which products are baked at the point of sale for immediate delivery to consumers, has revolutionised the bakery sector. This method is dramatically changing the bakery landscape, impacting the share of traditional artisanal baking and of packaged fresh products.

 

(AIBI own aggregated data, based on various private and public sources.)