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Behind the scenes of Gluten-Free Bread

Concerning food, consumers are constantly in search of wellbeing and taste.

Accordingly, for several years, they have been looking for gluten-free products, for reasons of intolerance or by personal choice. However, gluten plays a vital role in the production of bread, thus requiring “gluten-free” bread recipes to be adapted via substitution of ingredients.

In the world of bread making, Lesaffre, which has become a recognized expert, supports bakers on a daily basis by offering solutions for all types of bread and processes. In some countries, “gluten free” is an emerging niche market. Lesaffre has thus designed solutions for a result that is the closest possible to bread “with gluten”, based on an innovative method for sensory analysis focusing on texture: the Temporal Dominance of Sensations (TDS) approach.

A Global Underlying Trend

The boom of the gluten-free products market goes as far back as the early 2000s. Research & Markets expects growth of 10.2 percent per year by 2019. The bakery sector occupies a place of choice and claims 46 percent, by volume, of the gluten-free market. This gap is expected to widen further, and, by 2018, the sector could corner two-thirds of the value of “gluten-free” product sales.

Beyond allergy, comfort food

Gluten-free product consumption is far from limited to people affected by celiac disease. There are two major gluten-free product consumer groups (see Figure 1).

Diagnosed celiac consumers with medical prescriptions, whether they be intolerant, allergic or sensitive.

Consumers without medical advice bringing together people in search of comfort food, and who, by personal decision, follow media-maintained fads. This segment of the population is more difficult to identify, probably because it also varies from country to country. It would represent up to 23 percent of the population according to some experts (Nutrimarketing, Datamonitor).