BakeryBiz, Mar-Apr, 2021

Restructures hundreds of store bakery counters

UKs leading supermarket giant Asda has begun a consultation over scrapping its current method of ‘scratch’ baking at 341 UK branches putting up to
1,200 jobs at risk. Instead, it is switching to using a centralised bakery to deliver pre-baked products to stores each day.

Asda claimed the switch is driven by a shift in customer buying behaviours in recent years, with “demand for speciality bread, wraps, bagels and pancakes outstripping traditional loaves.”

Derek Lawlor, Asda Chief Merchandising Officer, informed, “the current in-store bakery model has restricted our ability to respond to changing customer demands and offer them the speciality products and freshly baked goods they want to buy throughout the day. The supermarket said it was responding to changing customer preferences – which also includes more demand for breakfast items.

The chain is not the only UK supermarket to shake up its bakery offering due to a shift in customer demand. The move comes just over a year after Tesco announced a similar shake-up of its in-store bakeries, shifting from bakery products being part-baked in-store instead of baked from scratch. Tesco said it would convert 58 bakeries so they can finish off partly prepared products.