Although the full review of the Bread and Flour Regulations 1998 is expected to take some time, the government wrapped up one talking point promptly by announcing on 20 September that the fortification of non-wholemeal wheat flour with folic acid would become mandatory in the UK. The year of 2021 has been one of rising costs for the baking industry. What’s more, 2022 looks set to bring more of the same.

In April 2021, M&S announced it was taking legal action over similarities between its iconic Colin the Caterpillar cake and Aldi’s rival product Cuthbert the Caterpillar. M&S argued that that Cuthbert represented a trademark infringement and filed a claim with the High Court. The pandemic has made major trends that were already shaping the food and drink market even more important There’s no doubt that government regulation – both planned and enforced – changed the legislative landscape for the baking industry in 2021.With the importer footing the bill – at a full tariff rate of €172 per tonne – the Republic of Ireland was highlighted as the biggest loser from this situation due to its heavy reliance on flour imported from the UK, much of which contains a high proportion of American and Canadian wheat. Marks & Spencer has embraced this by using leftover baguettes and boules from its in-store bakeries to create garlic bread, which is then frozen and sold. Roberts Bakery tapped into this kind of thinking with its luxury hot cross buns made with upcycled bread ferment – misshapen white loaves that otherwise would have gone to waste. Wasted food is essentially wasted money, so as the UK enters a recession and belts tighten, businesses and consumers will be looking more closely at this issue. There was concern before the legislation came into force as to whether the food industry was ready for the new rules, with eight out of 10 food business owners telling a GS1 survey they felt unprepared. However, the Food Standards Agency (FSA) launched a hub in the summer to help businesses, including bakeries and cafés, comply with the legislation, and fears have so far been allayed.

Baking Yesteryear contains 100 recipes expertly curated by B. Dylan Hollis that will take you on a delicious journey through the past. With a larger-than-life personality and comedic puns galore, baking with Dylan never gets old. We’ll leave that to the recipes. When the UK was part of the EU, the so-called ‘mutual recognition principle’ meant flour from the UK could be placed on the market of other EU member states, and vice versa, regardless of national rules as long as it complied with EU law. However, Brexit obviously put paid to this. Ingredients: granulated sugar; all-purpose flour; candied cherries; dried figs; raisins; walnuts; light corn syrup; egg whites One key piece of legislation for the food industry that originally passed in September 2019 came into force on 1 October 2021: the UK Food Information Amendment 2019 – better known as Natasha’s Law. Aldi also appealed to its supermarket rivals – including M&S – to make equivalent fundraising commitments from sales of their own caterpillar cakes. M&S responded by pointing out its own charity drives and suggesting Aldi “use [its] own character”.For example, the so-called ‘rules of origin’ (RoO) meant tariffs could be applied to exported goods depending on where they originated from – potentially causing an issue for those in the UK baking industry using third-party (brought in from outside the UK or EU) wheat for products to export to the EU. Tasha was awarded Star Baker in week two after her biscuits wowed the judges. Not only did she do well on the custard cream technical, but she also impressed Paul and Prue with her katsu curry biscuit illusion. Life with four children means that, for Cristy, there always seems to be a birthday to bake for and an exciting party to plan. She describes her baking style as enchanted and pretty – bakes that conjure up a sense of childhood. Cakes are her speciality, and she draws flavour inspiration from her own Israeli heritage and from her husband’s Jamaican roots. Nostalgic bakery goods deliver the same warm feeling and as we move into 2021 with Covid very much still on our doorsteps, is likely to be on consumers’ agendas in the coming months,” adds Michael Schofield, marketing manager at Bakels.