Global insights provider Innova Market Insights has released details about its top 10 trends for the bakery industry for the year.

Based  on wide-ranging global consumer surveys, Innova’s research is based on global consumer surveys, the company’s own network of researchers and tracking of new product launches.

From the top 10 trends identified, Innova cites five as the most influential in the bakery category. These included:

• Ingredients taking the spotlight,
• Prioritising prevention,
• Indulging in health
• Nurturing nature, and
• Local goes global.

The “Ingredients taking the spotlight” trend related to companies capitalising on positive consumer attitudes towards key ingredients by promoting a product’s star element.

Innova’s research showed consumers are looking for value from the ingredients in their bakery products and are always looking for ingredients of interest on the product packaging. Of these, protein was identified as the most important to consumers, although other functional ingredients such as probiotics and collagen – although niche – were still accepted by consumers.

Prioritising prevention referred to the trend of preventing health concerns before they arose. Consumers were driven to products that met their own personal wellbeing needs.

Research indicated that more than one in three consumers claimed to be proactive in preventing health issues, with major concerns related to physical health, weight management, heart health, and bone and joint health chosen most often.

However, these concerns also varied across the generations, which in turn allows companies to target specific audiences.

Comforting treats that come with added goodness, or health brands moving into indulgence products fall under the “Indulging in health” trend.

A majority of consumers around the world indicate a willingness to sacrifice indulgence in favour of healthier food choices. Indulgent bakery products with active health claims are on the rise, with a 14 per cent increase in the past five years. The fastest growing claims include indulgent bakery products with prebiotics, immune health, probiotics, and added calcium.

Savoury snacks with active health claims were shown to be most popular. There was a 52 per cent growth of savoury biscuits or crackers with an active health claim in the past year alone.

The “Nurturing nature” trend highlights the responsibility of businesses to go beyond just sustainable and requiring actions that make a positive difference to nature protection.

According to Innova there is an increasing consumer interest in products with environmentally-focused claims.

Bakery products can be seen to align with these with several claims. Products with a forest protection-related claim has seen a rise, increasing by 37 per cent between 2020 and 2023. Carbon-related claims grew by a whopping 48 per cent in the same period, while regenerative agriculture-related claims more than tripled between 2022 and 2023.

Finally, the “Local goes global” trend refers to the claims of international authentic-style products as well as local ingredients growing in the bakery sector.

Ultimately, the research has indicated consumers are desiring both ends of the spectrum when it comes to indulgence and health benefits.