Salmonella Control in Commercial Baking: Kill-Step Validation

Overview of the U.S. Baking Industry

The baking industry in the United States is older than the country itself, and a number of flour mills in the American colonies operated bakeries (Albion & Williamson, 1944). Many of the baked goods produced by these early bakeries—especially bread products—bore little resemblance to their modern, enriched counterparts. As Albion and Williamson (1944) report, "A considerable part of their exports being bread, probably mainly a 'hardtack' that would not deteriorate on long sea voyages" (p. 447). Over time, the American baking industry became more specialized, with one sector focusing on pastries, cakes, pies, and breads, while a second sector produced biscuits and crackers (Albion & Williamson, 1944).

The biscuits and cracker sector was the first to introduce large-scale factory production, largely because its products were less perishable and could be distributed over larger geographic regions (Albion & Williamson, 1944). At the turn of the twentieth century, American bakeries in this sector began to form strategic alliances and large corporations became commonplace. Albion and Williamson note that "In 1898 the National Biscuit Company [NBC] was formed by the merger of four large companies. The new company, it was claimed, would control the cracker and biscuit trade from the Atlantic to the Rockies, operating 139 plants and about 90% of the total capacity of the industry" (p. 447).

NBC applied improved packaging methods and innovative marketing strategies to grow its market share rapidly. By 1900, it was using more than two million barrels of flour annually and had plans to mill its own flour (Albion & Williamson, 1944). The other baking sector—specializing in perishable goods such as breads, pies, cakes, and pastries—benefited from manufacturing improvements introduced during World War I, which helped it develop commercial products, especially preservative-enhanced breads, that enjoyed widespread popularity (Albion & Williamson, 1944).

By 1940, the U.S. federal government, concerned over the malnourishment that had adversely affected the American population during the Great Depression, took action. At least 13% of the initial million men assessed by draft boards in 1940 were refused active duty service due to malnourishment and associated symptoms (Wonder Bread, 2012). According to the editors of The Wilson Quarterly, "It dawned on the government to spike the most ubiquitous items in American pantries with vitamins. Thiamin, niacin, iron, and eventually riboflavin became banner ingredients of enriched bread" (Wonder Bread, 2012, p. 66).

To ensure public receptivity to enriched bread, the U.S. Department of Agriculture partnered with baking industry researchers in 1952 to launch what has been termed the "Manhattan Project of bread" (Wonder Bread, 2012, p. 66). The goals of this public-private partnership were twofold: (a) to identify American consumer preferences for white bread taste, texture, and appearance, and (b) to develop manufacturing processes capable of producing large quantities of bread rapidly (Wonder Bread, 2012). The findings were based on exhaustive testing of 600 American families in Rockford, Illinois. Most consumers preferred "extremely fluffy bread," likely because this quality was widely regarded as a sign of freshness, and also preferred bread that was two-and-a-half times sweeter than the typical product of the day (Wonder Bread, 2012).

Researchers also identified a new method for fermenting yeast that significantly reduced the rising time required for bread products and introduced methods for strengthening gluten strands to withstand more rigorous automatic production (Wonder Bread, 2012). As the editors of The Wilson Quarterly conclude, "Four years and almost one hundred thousand slices of bread later, the prototypical loaf of enriched white bread was born" (Wonder Bread, 2012, p. 66). By 1962, average American consumers were eating one-and-a-half pounds of this newly enriched bread product each week, providing between 25% and 30% of their requisite caloric intake (Wonder Bread, 2012).

Today, companies in the American baking industry produce an enormous array of products, including fresh and frozen bread, cakes, pies, and doughnuts (Bakery business, 2016). Major competitors include Flowers Foods and McKee Foods. Approximately 2,800 commercial bakeries account for a combined annual revenue of approximately $36 billion, together with around 6,000 retail bakeries generating approximately $3.8 billion (Bakery business, 2016). Today, the industry generates more than $102 billion in direct economic activity each year and employs more than 706,000 highly skilled workers; the aggregated total economic impact, taking into account the multiplier effect of supplier and induced spending, is estimated at nearly $310 billion a year (Baking industry economic impact study, 2016).

The U.S. baking industry has an enormous impact on the American economy, generating approximately $311.0 billion in total economic output, or about 2.1% of the country's GDP (Baking industry economic impact study, 2016). According to the American Bakers Association (ABA), bakers, product wholesalers, and retailers directly or indirectly employed approximately 1.76 million Americans in 2010. Individuals employed in the U.S. baking industry earned more than $90.2 billion in wages and benefits in 2015 and paid $38.5 billion in direct federal, state, and local taxes—a figure that does not include state and local sales taxes paid on baked goods (Baking industry economic impact study, 2016).

Demand for bakery goods is projected to increase at a yearly rate of approximately 0.6% over the next five years, reaching a total of nearly $40 billion (Bakery business, 2016). The U.S. Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) reports that "Consumers are expected to continue to trend toward healthy eating and increase demand for items like fortified breads, gluten-free loaves and sprouted and organic sweets" (Bakery business, 2016, p. 3). External competition has increased over the past five years and imports will continue to grow at an annualized rate of 7.1%; however, growing demand outside the country is expected to increase exports by 9.8% per year over the next five years (Bakery business, 2016).

In 2012, there were approximately 167,600 baker jobs in the United States, with about 6% of bakers self-employed (Bakery business, 2016). Industry analysts project a 6% increase in the number of bakers between 2012 and 2022, though this rate is below the average for all occupational types. Innovations in manufacturing and mass production methods are also expected to limit future job growth (Bakery business, 2016).

Changing consumer preferences also continue to shape the industry. Fully 50% of American consumers currently report that high fiber content in prepared cakes and pies is important to them (Zegler, 2014). About 58% express increased demand for bakery goods that are fresher and higher in protein content. As Zegler (2014) emphasizes, "Not only do consumers want to know what's inside their products, they want to know how it got there and more about the company that made it" (para. 3). The U.S. baking industry thus faces both significant challenges and opportunities going forward.

References

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