südback Stands for Tradition, Mastery, and Passion
Many nations have invented bread specialties and have a longstanding tradition in their love for baked products, but Germany is in a (bakery) class of its own, with more than 3,200 different types of bread, sold in more than 11,000 bakeries across the country.
Highlighting their passion for baked goods, it is natural to say that a trade fair dedicated to this industry was mandatory. Germany’s unwavering love for bread has fueled the südback trade fair back in 1978 and has helped it grow ever since. Market data build my argument by themselves: the revenue in the bread and bakery products segment in this country amounts to USD23,091m in 2019. The market is expected to grow annually by 1.9% (CAGR 2019-2023), according to statista.com. By comparison, the highest revenue globally is generated in the United States (USD70,057m in 2019), followed by Germany. In relation to total population figures, per capita revenues of USD276.48 are generated in 2019, while the average per capita consumption stands at 73.5 kg.
Despite the impressive figures, this is not what makes Germany special in the sector and they only speak of quantities. Looking at the quality of the products, we see an entire bread culture nurtured in Germany, which was officially added by UNESCO to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2015.
However, what makes German bread culture stand out is definitely the passion and the ancestral legacy in this field. In 2016, while on a press trip for südback, I had the chance to visit two German bakery businesses. Both were driven by tradition, mastery, and passion.
The Braaker Mühle business had a beautiful, emotional story, which began 150 years ago. In 1859, the Lessau family business started with a traditional windmill, which remains functional to this day; the business is now successfully run by the fifth generation. Since then, the Lessau family has built up its traditional bakery to a level where it now processes between 2.5 and 3 tons of organic flour a day. Meanwhile, it also operates a snack restaurant near its premises, which is a nice place for people to meet in Hamburg.
Opened in 1996, Thomas Horn’s confectionery shop in Hamburg welcomes its guests with the trademark graffiti on its facade. Horn is a well-known confectioner in Germany who appeared on TV cooking shows; he is also the crafter who prepared a 40kg vanilla cake for the 2015 edition of INTERNORGA. Since then, Horn and his partners have continued the tradition of maintaining high standards with regard to confectionery and pastry products. In 1999, the company expanded deeper into bakery and now produces spectacular cakes and pastry products, along with bread, buns and baked goods for the catering sector.
Recently, Ali Abdullah Al Ahmad, UAE Ambassador to Germany, has written a lovely story about a bakery in Berlin and about its founders. The Ambassador even wanted to learn why it took the baker nearly two years of study and two years of practice to specialize. The answer was that “Bread is associated with all European civilizations and even other civilizations.”
Marcel Krueger, a German writer, also shows insights from the history of bakery in an article for CNN. There is a reason behind their love for spelt bread. “German bread is heavy and has substance; it (literally) outweighs fluffy focaccia or ciabatta,” he writes. And he explains why wheat is not used so much in Germany: “it doesn’t have the same amount of sunshine as southern France or Italy, and many areas are not conducive to wheat production, so grains such as rye and spelt tended to thrive better here and produced breads still consumed today.”
There is an emotional component to Germany’s tradition in breadmaking, which has helped consolidate a strong the bakery industry in Germany. Passion is coming from both consumers, bakers, and all associated solution providers for the industry. This is why an event that showcases this is ideal to host such a thriving industry network. This is why südback succeeds in bringing around 700 exhibitors to Stuttgart, offering everything from raw materials to the latest technologies in packaging, digitalization, and artificial intelligence. Having all these in mind, I can only add: enjoy your show!
Photo source: Messe Stuttgart