Supreme Instant Dry Yeast is non-GMO and clean label, according to Belarise, which is owned by the Pak Group.
The real benefits of the product come through in applications made with lean dough, which is a low-sugar dough, Walt Postelwait, Pak Group's president, told BakeryandSnacks.
“Any types of baked products that have 15% sugar or less, be it pizzas, low-sugar sandwiches or artisan breads,” explained Postelwait.
The 'gassing power' is how much CO2 the yeast is giving off over a determined period. “That’s what yeast does to the bread: when bakers put dough containing yeast into a proof box, they are giving the bread and yeast the right temperature and humidity to create gas as fast as as possible to make the dough rise,” he said.
Fresh versus dry
Fresh yeast only has a two- to three-week shelf life while it is refrigerated, Postelwait noted.
[However,] “typically during that time, the yeast cells [start] dying. So, the amount of gassing power you get from week one is going to be higher than what you see in week three.
[Conversely,] “instant dry yeast, including our latest Supreme instant dry yeast, has a two-year shelf life and can be kept in ambient temperatures,” Postelwait said.
The new yeast costs 20% more than its regular counterpart, but Bellarise said manufacturers will be able to save between 5% and 15% in their finished product cost due to reduced yeast use.
What about frozen bakery?
Several major bakeries have started tapping into the frozen aisle in the grocery retail as the category has experienced positive growth in recent years.
Hostess extended into frozen food for the first time with the launch of Deep Fried Twinkies last year, and Bimbo acquired frozen bakery brand, Panattiere, about two months ago, this site reported.
Additionally, Nestlé partnered with Hostess in developing a series of frozen baked goods that feature Twinkies, mini muffins and Sno Balls.
Bellarise noted its semi dried yeast, which the company uses a “proprietary freezing process” to produce, can be applied to frozen dough.
The company is currently in discussion with several large-scale bakeries to use its semi dry yeast for their frozen dough, Postelwait said.
Yeast and bread markets
Postelwait noted around 65% of the breads currently manufactured in the US are high-volume pan breads, such as buns and sliced breads, produced in high-speed automated facilities using cream yeast.
“The rest of the market uses instant dry yeast or fresh yeast,” he added.
He believed the yeast market “will continue to be strong, and it goes hand-in-hand with the growth of the bread market.”
The US bread and roll category reported around $13bn in sales in 2016, a 0.4% increase compared to a year ago, according to IRI data that includes total US multi-outlets with c-stores for the latest 52 weeks ending December 25, 2016.
Markets and Markets forecast the global yeast and specialty yeast market will reach $4.95bn by 2021, at a CAGR of 8.9% from 2016 to 2021.