Page 39 - Food & Drink March 2020

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
Irrespective of how old you are, buttery, flaky croissants are a winner.
They are redefining “healthy” as foods that are natural, organic, locally sourced or sustainable, rather than low-fat or high-fibre, as previous generations might.
Rosenbloom also says that millennials value the planet more than older generations so show more interest and put more value on how ingredients and food were sourced and grown, and how that affects their carbon footprint.
Sustainability is a priority for them when buying food at supermarkets or restaurants.
Millennials’ awareness of environmental issues has influenced food manufacturers to institute better earth- friendly practices.
ADAPTING BUSINESS TO NEW EXPECTATIONS
At Bakers Maison, we began to recognise changing consumer expectations as we started our own sustainability program.
On a product level, we are part of a growing trend in frozen food products.
Frozen products provide a number of environmental benefits for the foodservice industry, including the major issue of food wastage.
square metres of
solar panels on
the roof of our facility in Sydney’s south west, which produce 15 per cent of Bakers Maison’s energy needs.
The panels are specifically tailored to the food industry
“ Millennials are redefining ‘healthy’ as foods that are natural, organic, locally sourced or sustainable, rather than low-fat or high-fibre...”
Frozen items can be used as required, with excess stock kept in the freezer, significantly reducing the need for throwing excess product out.
The company converted
12 electric ovens to gas, replaced factory lighting with LED lights, and converted refrigerant gas from R22 to ammonia gas.
We also installed 1900
because it targets the energy- intensive process of cooling hot baked goods, an integral part of making its operations as efficient as possible.
By showing that a large-scale food manufacturing operation such as ours can be reliably powered by renewable energy, we hope others in the industry and other energy-intensive industries will follow. ✷
✷ ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Pascal Chaneliere is
managing director of
bakery supplier Bakers
Maison, a specialist
manufacturer of frozen
French-style breads,
pastries, and sweets available as fully baked, par-baked, ready to bake and ready to prove. He has worked in the industry for 25 years.
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