Functional premix for bakeries

BAKING MIXES FOR BAKERIES

Through a collaborative partnership with Blendhub and EIT Food, we created a sustainable, protein and fibre-rich baking mix by incorporating 15% of our CrumbsUp ingredient, demonstrating the potential of mixes to reduce the environmental footprint of the bakery industry.

CrumbsUp is a functional food ingredient made from bread and fungi. Our product is created using a quick, environmentally sustainable and energy-efficient solid-state aerobic fermentation (SSF) process.

COLLABORATION WITH BLENDHUB WITHIN THE AFFORDABLE NUTRITION SCALE-UP CHALLENGE

Rebread has successfully collaborated with Blendhub in the EIT Food Affordable Nutrition Scale-Up Challenge to develop a sustainable solution focused on alternative proteins and bakery surpluses to reduce food waste. Our collaboration began in September 2023 with Rebread as one of the 10 selected start-ups for the Affordable Nutrition Scale-Up Challenge. 

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DEVELOPMENT OF CRUMBSUP BREAD POWDER PREMIX

During the project, Blendhub worked closely with Rebread to design, develop, and launch an innovative, nutritious, affordable, and sustainable food product made from fungi, leveraging its proven Food-as-a-Service strategy. We have been working on recipes that incorporate 10%, 15% and 20% of our CrumbsUp fungi biomass as a substitute for flour, giving a boost of fibre and protein to the final baked product.

The resulting product, Soft Bread with CrumbsUp Bread Powder Premix, demonstrated the strong potential of CrumbsUp in bakery applications. 

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This ingredient not only serves as a nutritional improver and a color and flavor enhancer but also offers a slightly sweet flavor for sugar reduction and a remarkable preservative effect. Combining these benefits with its upcycling origin, CrumbsUp stands out as an ingredient with great potential in the food industry. 

The results from the first phase of the project were showcased during the EIT final project meeting at Blendhub’s Innovation and Co-creation Center. EIT members were pleased with the success achieved so far, marking a promising start to the next phase of our collaboration.

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SCALING UP CRUMBSUP TECHNOLOGY

Our future plans involve further development of the CrumbsUp technology under the EIT Impact Funding Framework. The primary focus is on scaling up and optimizing the production process of this ingredient. We aim to formulate bakery products with more than 15% CrumbsUp content, particularly in sweet bakery applications that can substantiate proven nutritional claims. Through successful technology transfer to bakery producers, surplus bread and its side streams can be transformed into a value-added ingredient. This approach supports the widespread adoption of innovative food waste solutions (aligned with SDG 12), improves the sustainability of industry infrastructure (SDG 9), and enhances accessibility to nutrition (SDG 2).

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BENEFITS OF USING CRUMBSUP IN YOUR OWN BREAD MIX

• Enhancing the nutritional profile of baked goods – compared to whole soybeans or soy powder, CrumbsUp is lower in calories and fat and increases protein and fibre, making it suitable for health-conscious consumers.
• The fermentation process naturally brings out sweetness, reducing the need for added sugars in recipes.
• By using CrumbsUp, bakeries can utilize local, resilient ingredients, supporting sustainable food production with smaller environmental footprint.
• Incorporating CrumbsUp helps bakeries use their own surpluses, reducing the need for additional flour and protein sources purchases and minimizing food waste.
• When produced in large quantities, CrumbsUp is more affordable than other plant-based protein sources (eg. soya), offering cost savings for bakeries.
• CrumbsUp is a versatile ingredient which can be used in various applications, including breads, cookies, low-calorie snacks, spreads, sauces, and protein bars, providing additional revenue for bakeries.
• Post-pilot, Rebread can license CrumbsUp production technology, enabling bakeries to scale up the production on-site or collaborate with an industrial partner, fostering long-term innovation and independence.

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Current status: bread baking mix ready for commercial implementation, baking tests concluded in a major international bakery producer