The must-attend virtual bakery event Bakery Live finally came to a close yesterday, on 21 June 2023, having welcomed over 800 attendees representing 83 countries.
As the first edition of Bakery Live, we decided to centre content topics around our overarching theme ‘Sustainable. Ethical. Lasting’ and over the two-day period, we witnessed the ingenuity of those working across the supply chain in the bakery industry to ensure greater sustainability.
On the first day of Bakery Live, we heard from speakers such as Matthew May, Director of Bakery at Kerry Taste and Nutrition who delivered insights into how they are tackling sustainability including investigating food waste and what can be done at a bakery level to address this, alongside Hannah Carter, CEO and Founder of OGGS and Isabel Trogh, Customer Technical Support at BENEO who spoke about egg replacement and the plant-based proteins that can act as alternatives. Joe Hill, Co-Founder of One Planet Pizza was on hand to discuss the plant-based bakery sector more generally, sharing anecdotes and insights from his journey as a plant-based bakery brand branching out into UK retailers.
During day two, attendees heard from Emily Ann Smith, Data Analyst and Editorial Executive at knowledge partner FMCG Gurus into the bakery trends to know – which centered on a growing number of health conscious consumers – while Heather Burgess, Marketing & Insights Manager at St Pierre Groupe spoke about the importance of retaining consumer loyalty and promoting quality and sustainability from the perspective of a bakery business. Attendees also got to hear from Stefania Montalti, Communication and Content Manager at sponsor CEPI Spa who spoke about the links between circularity and bulk handling and how this can prove a sustainable approach.
Mike Moran, Sales Director at Brook Food & Bakery Equipment took the time to talk with Editor Caitlin Gittins about labour shortages and energy efficiency, two major talking points in the industry and shared advice for bakeries looking to retain staff and cut energy costs as the bakery industry faces tough challenges. Anna Pierce, Director of Sustainability at Tate & Lyle also took the time to sit down to talk about sustainability in bakery, in the wake of the release of their latest Sustainability Report, discussing sustainable sourcing and what steps can be taken to ensure we are not only protecting the planet, but protecting people also.
Major topics discussed at Bakery Live included food waste, egg replacement, healthy bread, health-conscious consumers and sustainable packaging, to name a few. Both the sessions and interviews related in some way to sustainability, in recognition of the different forms it takes in the industry and what is important to bakers currently.
Thanks to the support of our sponsor CEPI Spa, attendees were treated to an insightful session on the circular economy and bulk handling, as Stefania shared her personal passion for sustainability in their solutions. Their exhibitor booth displayed their latest innovations and solutions for attendees to peruse.
Partnering once again with our knowledge partner FMCG Gurus, Emily Ann Smith shared the latest consumer insight for businesses to utilise, whether this is for new product development, strategy or marketing, they were on hand to deliver what consumers are interested in at the moment and what drives purchases.
From the Bakery Live team, we’d like to extend a big thank you to our sponsor, CEPI Spa, for their support, to our speakers, for taking the time to deliver insightful sessions, our knowledge partner FMCG Gurus for delivering their consumer insight once more and to our attendees, for joining us for two days of jampacked content.
“We are pleased to announce that the first edition of Bakery Live has been a big success,” said Jon Pittock, Publisher, Hand Media. “We look forward to returning in February 2024 and continuing the tradition of being a vital source to the industry. I am proud of the Bakery Live team, with special mention to Caitlin, for curating an insightful and engaging conference agenda with speakers from all across the globe.
“It was also a pleasure for this edition of Bakery Live to be co-located with the second edition of Confectionery Live, proving over 30+ hours of content for both the confectionery and bakery industries. It is clear that the bakery market is a thriving one, full of continuous evolution and a desire for change and betterment.”
