The fast-paced environment of today’s society has deeply influenced consumer behavior regarding dining out: consumers want a nutritious and fulfilling eating experience, which is also quick and health oriented.
The out-of-home dining experience time has dropped significantly in modern times, as people are willing to wait less and less for their meal to be delivered. According to the latest information by the organizers of Succesfood trade fair, the exhibition of contamporary foodservice, whose next edition takes place in March 2014, the average French consumer needs only 20 minutes for their dining out ritual. This has become a challenge for producers, as well as for restaurant operators, both of whom need to adapt their offers to the fast-paced environment and the busy schedules of their patrons and is an area where frozen food solutions and ingredients for bakery products excel at.
Therefore, new solutions have been developed, from ingredients that are both natural and quick to prepare, to equipment that allows for a swift end-result to be delivered to consumers. Another trend that has emerged because of the changing eating habits of today’s consumers is the demand for authentic and healthy food, made with natural and functional ingredients. Since an increasing number of people are becoming more health-conscious, the demand for top notch, natural and regionally sourced meals, derived from high-quality ingredients is on the rise. The need for balanced meals has encouraged producers of baked goods and ingredients to accelerate their research and development efforts, in order to create solutions that meet the current demands: organic, free-from, local, ethical, allergen free. Finally, the third trend of modern day foodservice is a change in eating-out times, as people’s busy schedules no longer allow them to have breakfast or dinner at the usual AMs and PMs. What this means is an increase in flexibility on the part of restaurateurs and producers, in order to accommodate the changes that occur in demand from consumers. All these trends and the related offers of ingredients and equipment can be thoroughly documented and discussed during next year’s Successfood, taking place March 8-12, 2014 at the exhibition center in Paris Nord Villepinte.
The meeting place for bakery experts
Taking into account the factors mentioned above, one can easily understand why the bakery sector is currently undergoing significant changes, in several areas it covers. At the same time and venue with Successfood, bakery specialists from all over Europe will meet with the occasion of Europain, one of the largest and most important trade fairs for producers of bakery goods, ingredients and technological solutions. Visitors will have the opportunity to discover the sector’s new products and latest innovations under the same roof. The Place des Innovations area will present exhibitors’ new products and the Europain Innovation Trophy Moreover, the Rue des Ecoles will give centre stage to the best up-coming baking and pastry-making trainees. The candidates taking part in Europain’s prestigious competitions are bursting with energy and creativity: visitors will have the chance of admiring the world’s best bakers and pastry-makers demonstrating their skills!
These exceptional competitions reflect the talent and passion to be found in this industry: Bakery Masters (brings together the 24 best candidates from the Louis Lesaffre Cups held in 2009 & 2011 and the 2012 Bakery World Cup. During the Bakery Masters, they will compete with one another in three categories to win the prestigious title of Master Baker), International Confectionery Art Competition (the only international competition involving mixed teams, which will have 20 hours to prepare 13 edible works of art and the French Schools Cup (involving teams of three young trainees will put the spotlight on training institutions and young talent. Visitors seeking innovations in the bakery field will have the chance to visit “The Cube”, Europain and SuccessFood’s innovative competition area, where most of the prestigious competitions will take place. Just like the exhibition itself, the 4000sqm area will bring together the food service and baking & pastry-making sectors. This stage has been enlarged, both in terms of the number of competition booths and the audience, and will provide a great opportunity for exchanges and business.
A natural ingredient for baked goods
Producers seeking an ingredient that doesn’t contain additives and is meant for clean label baked products and pizzas may be interested in the type of flour from Kampffmeyer Food Innovation, named Purafarin HydroSoft. According to company representatives, the new arrival in Kampffmeyer’s portofolio provides baked goods with high volume, extended freshness and a soft texture and is suitable for use in a variety of application fields, including fine baked goods, puff pastries, white breads and pizzas. Among some of the top benefits associated with this type of ingredient, which is labeled as wheat flour, are the reduction of starch retro-gradation after baking and, in turn, making the end-products last longer. Moreover, since it’s characterized as being a type of functional flour, Kampffmeyer says it is versatile and suitable for a wide range of goods, including frozen baked foodstuffs, as it helps with the rising of yeast in, for instance, frozen pizzas and can replace artificial rising agents either partly or completely, depending on dosage. Purafarin HydroSoft also ensures that the texture of end products is maintained even after several months of refrigerated storage. This is true for pizzas that are frozen in raw form as well as those that are frozen semi-baked. With laminated doughs such as puff pastries, the flour scores particularly highly from a time point of view. Purafarin HydroSoft® enables manufacturers to produce products without the usual gluten relaxation resting times during processing, thus reducing overall production times. Test recipes for fine baked goods such as muffins and cookies show that it is possible to use up to 30 percent less fat by adding the functional flour, while the texture and crumb consistency of baked goods, however, remain the same. More information on this type of flour can be found on the company website, www.kampffmeyer.com.
Expanding on the concept of “mezze”
Known throughout Europe as the ritual of tasting bite-sized appetizers of Greek and other Mediterranean countries’ cuisine, the mezze concept is considered a delicious and healthy way of sampling various dishes in small portions. The good news is that such portions are available in frozen format as well and one of the Greek producers whose portfolio include them is Ioniki Filosophy. Their product range contains tasty and innovative Mediterranean filo pies and the company recently introduced a collection of mini finger food delicacies. The five new tastes are a valuable addition to the Filosophy range, based on the principles of Mediterranean diet and created with high quality Greek local ingredients, such as Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Feta Cheese, selected Herbs and Vegetables. Among these products there are the puff pastry minis with feta cheese or sausage, spirals and triangles with spinach & feta, or mini rolls with Feta cheese. Company representatives say these are good choices of a new healthier and tastier philosophy of life, that will hold a special place in your everyday nutrition. The complete range of Filosophy pies can be discovered at www.ionikifilosophy.com.