British bakers are embracing the consumers' growing love for bread

09-Jul-2021 - Last updated on 09-Jul-2021 at 11:34 GMT

Brits love a loaf of freshly baked bread over the weekend. Pic: GettyImages/artJazz

A survey among craft bakers has highlighted some positive changes to shoppers’ bread buying habits over the past year, as well as the types of bread proving most popular.

The Craft Bakers Association found that 31% of its members reported that sales of all types of breads have increased in the past 12 months.

Brits particularly love to treat themselves to a loaf of freshly baked bread over the weekend, with one in three bakers noting a 20% increase of these goods bought on a Saturday or Sunday.

Results found white bread remains the most popular choice – with 66% noting this category held the highest percentage of sales – but 30% reported to also seen a growth in the sales of ‘healthy’ bread.

Many CBA members are taking advantage of the continued popularity of speciality breads, with 71% of those surveyed upping their offerings to include sourdough and multi-seed breads. A further 34% plan to introduce these types of breads this year.

For obvious reasons relating to contamination risks, gluten-free breads are not offered by the majority of bakers.

“It’s great to see such positive results in general for all bakery, along with a growth in interest in speciality breads,” said Karen Dear, CBA director of Operations.

“This is very much an ongoing trend and which we expect to see continue for months to come.”