Baking Goodies for a Healthy Market Growth

The market was estimated at USD10.2 billion in 2016 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.8 percent in the forecast period 2018-2023.  It witnesses a high consumption rate in the categories of cakes, pastries, pies, scones, bread, biscuits, and cereals in the developed markets of North America and Western Europe. Nearly half of US consumers (45percent) purchased a high-protein bar in the past month, according to research. However, due to textural deterioration during shelf life – a common issue with high-protein snack bars – it’s likely that many of the bars had lost their soft and chewy texture by the time they were eaten. There is a growing consumer demand for nutritional content in baked foods with low sugar, whole grain, and zero Trans-fat per serving. Increasing obesity rates and aging population have put the usage of healthy ingredients in the U.S. on a national front. The growing demand for ready-to-eat food is expected to boost the bakery ingredients markets. The shift in the conventional home cooked food to convenience foods has also increased the demand of these bakery ingredients in the emerging markets. The focus would be on innovation in sweeteners, dry ingredients, starches and derivatives, oil and shortenings ingredients to meet the consumer demand for low trans fats and gluten free products, without modifying the quality, texture, and taste of these products. According to Mordor Intelligence, the growing substitution of the baked goods with the cereals and corn flakes categories is difficult to sustain unless there are healthier and innovative products in the bakery ingredients in compliance with GMP. The future scope for the bakery ingredient manufacturers would lie in the advancements of food ingredients systems and thereby providing a common platform for food makers, food service providers, and retailers to meet the companies’ strategies in meeting with the consumer consumption trends and preferences. Bakery ingredients are broadly categorized in different product segments, which are fats and shortenings, emulsifiers, bases and mixes, functional blends, colors and flavors, leavening agents, and others. The bases and mixes segment accounts for the largest share followed by fats and shortenings. Enzymes are used to replace chemical additives and also help the companies reduce their processing time while saving energy costs. Emulsifiers are the ingredients that are used to obtain soft crumb-like and tenderness in the texture of some bakery products. Leavening agents, such as baking powder and yeast extracts, held the largest share in the global bakery ingredients market, as they are widely used for fermentation in baked products. In 2016, the global market for baking powder was valued at USD4.1 billion. The U.S. and Europe with their long-standing culture of consuming bakery and baked foods are the matured markets of this industry. Although Germany in the European region is dominating the bakery ingredients market, the European crisis has affected the consumer spending on baked goods. China and India, with their growing population and increasing disposable incomes, are the major markets for the baked goods, and hence the bakery ingredients. Consumers are willing to pay more for a healthier profile in the bakery products, which drives the growth of this market. The leading market players have been using strategies, such as expansions and new product launches, to increase their global presence and their productivity. Innovations in food ingredients by consumer preferences also meet the company objectives of reducing costs. As mentioned in Mordor’s Intelligence report,   several companies find it important to meet the local regulatory requirements apart from meeting their standard safety and quality criteria. To maintain a competitive edge in the baking ingredients market, according to Research and Markets, key players invest heavily in the launch and development of new products and technologies. Leading players such as Royal DSM (The Netherlands), Associated British Foods plc. (U.K.), Cargill, Inc. (U.S.), and Kerry Group (Ireland) have been profiled in the report. The report provides a complete analysis of prominent companies and a chronology of developments, with respect to new products/technologies launched and their applications.