Bread is one of the most traditional foods in the world. Consumed in the most varied formats, recipes and flavors, this food is present on several Brazilian tables.
According to the Brazilian Association of the Bakery and Confectionery Industry (Abip), the bread market grew 2.65% in 2019, reaching a turnover of R$ 95.08 billion. The average/month consumption of French bread in the country also increased 6.97% in 2019, reaching the figure of 704.72 tons.
To talk more about this market, Mariane Pinhal, Marketing Manager at MasterSense, invites Kenji Hiroita Filho, Innovation Manager at MasterSense, for a #EntreMasters chat. Check it out below!
Mariane Pinhal: Can you tell us about your history with the bakery market?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: First of all, I want to thank you for being able, on this very important date, to share a little of my experience of more than 20 years dedicated to the segment and having worked in large companies.
During this time I sought to specialize in different areas such as: production planning and control, industrial leadership, support in the development of production layouts and preparation of POP’s (Operational Production Processes), product development and indication of solutions, in addition to providing technical/commercial training for professionals in this area in South America.
Currently at MasterSense, in addition to managing our excellent technical team, I dedicate myself and work in this ancient art with a lot of love, respect, seriousness, trust and transparency, in support of the industries in the sector (Wheat Milling, Industrial Breadmaking, Frozen Breadmaking and Centrals Production) that seek excellence in their processes and recognition of their products by the end consumer.
Mariane Pinhal: Which professionals inspired you at the beginning of your career? And today?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: My beginning of my career was always based on the precept of the search for technical and management knowledge, and some people were certainly a source of inspiration for my journey.
My family, who always supported me in my decision-making and helped me in the most important moments. My best man at our wedding, Edgard Sergio Teixeira, Professor and Coordinator of the Administration Course at Centro Universitário de São Roque, who also had a brilliant career in the management and direction of a large company in the Civil Construction sector.
My friend Angelo Kawakami, Food Engineer and Bakery Specialist who inspired me in the passion for the art of baking. My friend Satico Ono, an excellent HR professional, who inspired me in her manner and dealings with people. My friend Shin Yonamine, a Food Industry professional who inspired me to have discernment and know how to choose how to act in leadership.
My friend Heloísa Fujihara, Food Engineer and Bakery Specialist, who acted as my mentor in my development and technical knowledge in the field. My friend Paulo Mitsunaga, Application Specialist, like me, who shared a lot of his knowledge with me. My friend Eduardo Pimentel, Chemical Engineer and Specialist in the segment, who supported me a lot when he was my manager and who also inspired me in my way of doing management.
In my career of more than 30 years, I’ve been through different segments and I can say that I have countless people who are a source of inspiration for me and I couldn’t list them all here. About my current inspiration, I can say that it is the day-to-day relationship and interaction between people, through stakeholders (customers, investors, employees, suppliers, competitors and owners) and that in the end it all comes down to this enriching exchange of experiences and lessons generated. At MasterSense, I can only be grateful, as I keep learning to reframe, reinvent and innovate every day.
Mariane Pinhal: What are the biggest lessons you learned during your work in the bakery area?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: That we have a lot to learn every day and that innovation does not stop, whether through the study of interactions in the use of raw materials or being aware of new equipment and production processes. Bakery and food professionals, in general, need to be aware of these constant changes, trends and technologies.
Mariane Pinhal: What #stay would you give to professionals who are at the beginning of their careers?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: Always be a questioner, exhaust the search for knowledge with the professional you have as a reference on a given topic and when your questions to him are exhausted, look for the complement of these questions in literature and with other experiences. This will help you build the best professional in you.
Mariane Pinhal: What main changes have you seen in the bakery market in recent years?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: We can summarize the actions aimed at delivering differentiation in value, breads produced with natural fermentation, with more artisanal characteristics and with greater diversification in the use of grains and types of farinaceous products.
This trend is also closely associated with the recovery of naturalness and, consequently, we have the unfolding of other fronts of specific markets such as Gluten Free and Lactose Free, in addition to the influence of the European market.
The market has grown and what used to be a niche or a trend, today is no longer, and has a constant growing demand. In addition, there is an incessant search by the end consumer for more product differentiation and better nutritional value.
The health issue is a strong point for today’s consumers. In addition to the agreement of industries in relation to concern with health, as well as the WHO, the search for more for industrialized foods with less sugar and fat content, or without the addition of trans fat and with a greater contribution of fiber, grew. With this, the bakery market remains attentive and has been supporting the consumer with these demands. Today it is possible to buy bread with a good amount of fiber and at the same time protein, delivering flavor and indulgence.
Mariane Pinhal: How can an ingredients and flavors industry help professionals in the bakery segment?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: Closely monitoring the market trends and needs of the bodies that delimit the use of ingredients and flavors in food, from the legal, health point of view and helping bakery professionals in the search for this alignment, with the support of competent professionals in this market. This is the way that MasterSense has been acting, committed to being a key business partner for the Food Industry.
Mariane Pinhal: Traveling from Oiapoque to Chuí, what are the main cultural differences you find in relation to the bread characteristics desired by the consumer?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: Cultural differences exist and they are many. In the South of Brazil, for example, it is common for people to prepare the famous “Homemade Breads” in a traditional way, by hand, unlike when you go to the Southeast, where this practice is not available and the closest thing to this is the use of the famous bread-making machines, which became alternatives.
Another curiosity is that some regions such as the North and Northeast, make more use of cylinders to “knead” the bread dough, than the Southeast region. All regions make use of the cylinder on a smaller or larger scale, but the North and Northeast stand out in this practice.
And one more curiosity is about the name given to “French bread”, which also has nothing to do with the country that gave it that name. The French baguette, with a hard crumb and thick skin, which received this name only later was the “French bread”.
In São Paulo, the capital, for example, it is called “Pãozinho”, alternatively. In Ribeirão Preto and Piracicaba, it is called “filão”. In Baixada Santista, it is called “average”. In Sergipe, it is “Jacob bread”. In Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro, it is “bread of salt”. In Manaus and Piauí, it is “thick bread”. In Ceará, it is “carioquinha”. In Pará, it is “bald bread”. And in Rio Grande do Sul, it is “cassetinho”.
Mariane Pinhal: Which impacts caused by Covid-19 do you see in this market?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: I believe that the effects of COVID-19 made the population strongly rethink their health care and thus seek healthier products, with more protein, vitamins and fiber. The industries that are focusing on these needs, in addition to getting “ahead”, can be sure that they will establish themselves as a reference and that they will certainly be continued in a post-pandemic scenario.
Another important behavioral change is related to delivery systems, which are much more used today, as well as the diversity of these services’ offers. Bakeries, for example, are adapting to this new reality and this practicality is also being recognized by the population.
Mariane Pinhal: This week we celebrate World Bread Day. What tribute would you leave for the date?
Kenji Hiroita Filho: In the times when we live the greatest challenge of humanity, we have to have a lot of resilience. Bread is a sacred food as well as a resilient one, surviving for millennia. Rest assured that after we go through this moment, the taste of conquest will be unparalleled.
With its wide range of ingredients, MasterSense offers specialized solutions that serve several markets in the food industry, including bakery and confectionery.
