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HealthBread product innovation based on FP6 HealthGrain results and knowledge

Final Report Summary - HEALTHBREAD (HealthBread product innovation based on FP6 HealthGrain results and knowledge)

Executive Summary:
1.0 Executive Summary

The HealthBread project (HealthBread product innovation based on FP6 HEALTHGRAIN results and knowledge) has developed consumer oriented whole grain and white breads. These bread have improved nutritional and product quality. These results were realised by the further development and application of scientific and technological knowledge gained from the HEALTHGRAIN project. This was combined with business development activities and innovation and craftsmanship provided by SME bakers who engaged in the HealthBread project. Following the positive response from consumer tests and on a number of HealthBread products, six SME bakeries have launched (post-project activity) natural, nutritionally enriched bread products. These products have excellent taste and their nutrition and health benefits are communicated with ‘EFSA-proof’ statements. Communication and demonstration activities conducted post-project are expected to result in a much wider dissemination of the obtained results and the continued creation of HealthBread type products within European SME bakeries.

The scientific knowledge gained in HealthBread was translated into practice and summarised in the HealthBread Bakers Manual which includes guidelines for selection and processing of raw materials and for nutrition and health statements. The Manual was made available in languages of the participating SME bakeries (German, Italian and Dutch) as well as English for wider use by SME bakeries outside of the project. This Manual will enable SME Bakers to produce improved bread products for EU consumers.

The HealthBread Association has been registered as a ‘not-for-profit’ association in Austria as well as a Community Trade Mark (CTM) for facilitating future exploitation opportunities in European countries. The Association plans to provide services e.g. PR to strengthen brand name, capacity building - technical and non-technical skills to SME bakers, training of HB baking practices, management of HB community and certification trademark, dissemination and support in relation to legislative issues) and knowledge transfer of the HealthBread project results; thereby enabling SME bakeries to produce and successfully market HealthBread products.

Impact on business and innovation:

Five SME bakeries/ project-partners and one other SME bakery have already included a HealthBread bread type as a premium product in their product range, thereby contributing to the profitability of their business. By the multiple communication and dissemination efforts during the project and major post-project information and demonstration activities planned, this economic and innovative impact is expected to be transferred to a wide range of SME bakeries in Austria, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands and probably also beyond these member states.

Contributing to a healthier diet for Europeans and to public health:

Nutritional guidelines in Europe recommend an intake of dietary fibre significantly higher than the actual intake of most Europeans. They also emphasise intake of fibre naturally present in fruits, vegetables and wholegrain. Recent recommendations emphasise the importance of intake of fibre form grains, since these fibres show in observational nutrition studies a stronger correlation with beneficial health effects (risk reduction for heart diseases, diabetes type-2 and cancer). A consumers' shift towards the purchasing of ‘HealthBread’ products will result in more than twice as much cereal fibre intake; in addition the higher levels of important nutrients like folate, iron, magnesium and zinc also contributes to a healthier diet. With the expected wider introduction of ‘HealthBread’ products across SME bakers a ‘consumer shift’ can become a reality at a significant population level.

Project Context and Objectives:
2.0 Summary of project context and objectives

2.1. Project context

European consumer interest in nutrition and healthier eating options has increased and if consumer expectations can be met (regarding taste and presentation issues) these consumers would generally prefer healthier bread products that those presently sold. SME (artisan) bakeries play a key role in the European bread production industry, with production levels within these companies accounting to at least 50% of the total amount produced across Europe. Craftsmanship, and a skill to produce high quality products is seen by consumers as the key attributes of these bakers. These are the bakeries whose business stem from a family tradition of baking products for local and regional markets and have an established a ‘loyal’ consumer base.

The HealthBread project team included:
- 8 SME bakers from Austria, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, 2 of each country.
- 2 research & technology organisations - TNO (Netherlands, coordinator), VTT (Finland)
- 7 other industry and technology partners: Dyadic (enzyme producer. the Netherlands), Netherlands Bakery Centre (NBC), RTD-Services (Austria) for dissemination and business development, administration, Kampffmeyer Food Innovation (Germany; since 1-11-‘14 Goodmills Food Innovation) and from Italy Open Fields & Tandoi (flour milling) and Geovita (ingredient processing).

NBC, Open Fields and Kampffmeyer (experienced in flour milling and ingredient development) acted as mentoring partners for the bakeries in the Netherlands, Italy and Germany/Austria, respectively. This mentoring partner concept proved to be very effective in facilitating the participation and commitment of SME bakeries in the project.

The objective of the project was to deliver bread products which have an improved nutritional and product quality beyond standard white or wholemeal breads. The research and development envisaged for the project was to be achieved by practically applying the scientific and technological knowledge obtained from results of the preceding FP6 HEALTHGRAIN project. The main results for the HealthBread project were the production and marketing of commercially viable, healthier bread products for SME Bakers targeted consumer groups. In addition to these objectives, the HealthBread Bakers Manual (produced in the German, Italian, Dutch and English) presents SME bakers across Europe with guidelines - on the availability of raw materials, processing procedures and nutritional statements for the production and sale of healthier bread products in local and regional markets across Europe.

White bread, wholegrain bread and HealthBread bread, what is the difference?
The wheat grain kernel consists of three main parts (Figure 1, Annex 1), the starchy endosperm, the bran and the germ. By milling, flour can be separated in endosperm, bran and germ. Wholegrain (also called wholemeal) bread is made with flour of the complete kernel, and therefore contains significantly higher levels of dietary fibre and a range of beneficial micronutrients than white bread, made from white flour, consisting mainly of endosperm. Consumption of wholegrain bread is widely recommended by national nutrition centres. However, wholegrain bread with its darker colour, typical taste (some bitterness) and dense structure (lower volume) compared to white bread, is less appreciated by most Europeans. The specific taste and colour of wholegrain is predominantly concentrated in the pericarp, the outer bran layer. Most beneficial micronutrients are concentrated in the main inner bran layer, the aleurone.

The HealthBread project key objective was to develop bread products with nutritional benefits at least similar to wholegrain bread with attractive sensory properties.


2.2. Project objectives

HealthBread’s detailed project objectives are:

1. Develop dry processing (milling) technologies for production of wheat fractions which can be used in subsequent WP’s to develop nutritionally enriched breads meeting HealthBread technological and nutritional criteria. The dry milling processes adopted will be based on those studied in Healthgrain such as peeling and micronization, and will be further developed and optimized to produce wheat fractions with high levels of fibre and micronutrients.( WORK PACKAGE 1).

2. Improve the bioaccessibility of bioactive compounds in wheat fractions by wet processing (fermentation) technology without compromising technological functionality of these fractions in bread making. Using bioprocessing with selected enzymes and microbes, we aim to modify the morphology of wheat fractions and to hydrolyse specific bindings, in order to liberate bioactives such as ferulic acid and minerals, with the aim to improve their bioaccessibility. Furthermore, bioprocessing will aim at solubilisation of the cell wall material to produce soluble fibers and further enrichment of the wheat fractions with bioactives formed during bioprocessing, i.e. folates. The verifiable targets are attaining a wheat fraction containing of at least 200% more free ferulic acid, 50 % less phytate and does not have negative impact on bread volume. (WORK PACKAGE 2)

3. Guide and support the development of nutritionally enriched bread products with respect to nutritional quality targets for both White Bread Plus and Wholegrain Bread and its communication to consumers, taking into account European and national regulations and practices. The WP will assess nutritional quality in terms of dietary fibre and of selected bioactives such as minerals and vitamins, where the bread products to be developed may meet the criteria for being a source of (EC Regulation No 1924/2006). These will include Fe, Mg, Zn and vitamin B1, B3 and B6. Ferulic acid will also be included, as an important anti-oxidant. The High Fibre criterion is considered as important for all bread products in this project. The nutritionally enriched wholegrain bread products will aim for a 30% higher fibre level compared to reference wholegrain bread products. (WORK PACKAGE 3)

4. Evaluate the effects of bioactive-rich wheat fractions on the bread making process and bread organoleptic quality and optimizing the key parameters: bread volume, crumb softness, colour and flavour. This will be done by selection of fractions and/or optimization of formulation and processing. The work will focus on optimised processing (WORK PACKAGE 4)

5. Develop baked goods (bread, but maybe other products too) with optimized nutritional and product quality, and to be able to produce these in baking trials at the SME bakeries and make the baked goods available in the shop for evaluation. (WORK PACKAGE 5)

6. Development including and going beyond the conventional Dissemination and Exploitation (D&E) WP usually found in a collaborative project (CP). Because this CP has only a two-year duration, €1 mill grant, from which 75% is dedicated to SMEs, this WP has been titled Business Development, which goes beyond standard D&E to focus on supporting the SMEs to bring the HealthBread results “onto the shop shelves” as well as providing them the know-how to successfully market these products, but without compromising the dissemination of knowledge generated to SME bakers at both European and local levels. (WORK PACKAGE 6)

Figure 2 in Annex 1 shows these Work packages and their connections and relationships.

Project Results:
3.0 HealthBread Science and Technology Results

3.1 Introduction

HealthBread started with investigating
- Milling technologies delivering fractions with light colour, mild taste, such as fractions high in aleurone or ‘wholegrain concentrate’ of light coloured wheat varieties.
- Fermentation for increasing bio-availability of minerals and anti-oxidants of these fractions, also aiming at reducing their negative influence on bread volume.
- Optimal dough fermentation and baking conditions by selecting appropriate processing conditions and use of food grade enzymes.
- Nutrition and health benefits Possibilities for communication by bakers of their HealthBread bread products (‘EFSA approved').
This was followed by product development by bakeries and consumer testing.

Mentoring and project partners continued to assist HealthBread craft expert bakers with development and business support for marketing unique HealthBread bread products. This was followed by the publishing of the HealthBread Bakers Manual for craft bakeries across Europe and a range of information, communication and promotional actions.

The basic principles for processing of HealthBread bread products, shown in Figure 3, Annex 1, are:
- use of nutrient dense wheat fractions,
- long fermentations,
- dough fermentation and baking with a choice of processing aids

Selection of flour/wheat fraction mix: e.g. 93/7 or 82/18 (82% white flour +18% WG concentrate = wholemeal flour)
Aim: bread with ≥ 6% fibre, ‘source of’ levels of important nutrients (e.g. iron, magnesium, zinc, folate), light colour and mild taste

Fermentation (‘bioprocessing’): of wheat fraction ~ 12-18 h with yeast and food grade enzymes
Aim: improving bread texture/volume, taste and bioavailability of minerals and ferulic acid (a key anti-oxidant in wheat)

Baking Process:
A: With bakery improvers (labelling needed)
B: With food grade enzymes (no labelling needed)
Note: A. and B. can deliver the same volume as white bread
C: Without additives (yeast/sourdough only; no labelling needed; can result in lower bread volume)

3.2. Milling technologies for wheat fractions high in fibre and micronutrients with light colour and mild taste

Starting with the expertise acquired in HEALTHGRAIN, and the experience of HealthBread partners experienced in milling and treatment of flour, the following wheat fractions were prepared and studied:
1) Soft wheat aleurone (SWA; 52g fibre/100g)
2) Durum wheat aleurone (DWA; 45g fibre/100g)
3) Wholegrain concentrate (WGC 35g fibre/100g )
4) Wheat bran (WB 39g fibre/100g)

All fractions were prepared both with standard particle size and micronized – i.e. with average particle size well below 100 micron - the latter option was chosen for getting a higher bio-availability of micronutrients and anti-oxidants, since in this way most cells are disrupted.

In assessment sessions in Germany, the Netherlands and Italy, bakers selected fractions 1, 2 and 3 for further product development for bread with at least 6% fibre. Fractions SWA and DWA were chosen for their high content of fibre and micronutrients. Bread with WGC was light in colour; with the required 18% addition level the bread can be named ‘wholegrain', thereby conveying an attractive health message. In a first of trials with all fractions, and particle sizes coarse (c) and micronised (m) all bread volumes (an important quality parameter) were already higher than those of standard wholegrain bread, as is shown in Figure 4 of Annex 1. Later on, options for a further increase in volume were realised as is shown in Figure 5, Annex 1.

Micronising was abandoned as an option since:
- Its effects on increasing bio-availability were small compared to fermentation
- Baking trials showed a negative effect on bread volume
- The technology requires high energy input

3.3. Fermentation ‘bioprocessing’ of wheat fractions and selection of enzymes

Fermentation of wheat fractions
Wet fermentation (‘bioprocessing’) was applied on wheat fractions to improve the bioavailability of bioactive compounds. Fractions were incubated in a yeast fermentation process with xylanase and feruoylesterase enzymes selected in orientating trials. Based on an experimental design, optimal process conditions ‘fermentation protocols’ were defined, where, as shown in Figure 5, Annex 1, the level of free ferulic acid increased well over 200% and phytate levels dropped by 40%, indicating an increase in bio-accessibility of iron and zinc of ~ 50%. The undesired increase of dough stickiness was kept minimal. Dietary fibre levels dropped slightly – no more than 0.5%; probably due to breakdown to oligosaccharide fibres, not measured with the standard analytical method, but included in the current EU dietary fibre definition (2008, Commission Directive 2008/100/EC).

Breaking down of phytate for increased availability of minerals
The phytase enzyme present in wheat and its fractions is breaking down phytate, especially during long fermentation processes. However, heat stabilisation of Wholegrain concentrate fraction (against rancidity that may occur upon storage of over one month) inactivated the native phytase. By bioprocessing with added phytase major breakdown of phytate could be realised. Since phytase, albeit food grade, is not permitted for bread in some EU countries, HealthBread’s fraction suppliers and bakers preferred and applied other options, based on long fermentation processes with wheat fractions or flour not stabilised by heat treatment, enabling native wheat phytase to act. Following a wish of some bakers for a pre-fermented and dried WGC, partner KFI developed and up-scaled a WGC fermentation and drying process and is now applying heat stabilisation after fermentation during drying.

3.4. Optimizing dough fermentation and baking for matching the quality of white bread

Product quality studies focused on optimising the types of HealthBread breads shown below, and also in Table 1, Annex 1.

Product concept: WhiteBread + (WB+)
Recipe base: White flour + special wheat fraction
Characteristics:
Bread looks and tastes like white bread; nutritional value at least similar to wholemeal bread.

Product concept: Wholegrain+ (WG+)
Recipe base:Wholemeal flour + special wheat fraction
Characteristics:
Bread that looks and tastes like wholemeal bread but with a higher nutritional value (at least +30% for fibre compared to wholegrain bread)..

Product concept: WhiteBread ++ (WB++)
Recipe base: White flour + special wheat fraction double amount
Characteristics: Same as Wholegrain +

* During the course of the project, the WG+ with >9% fibre was replaced by WB++, using white flour + double amount of special wheat fractions. The only difference is the recipe base used, whereas the product quality aims and nutritional content aim remained identical.

For the different types of HealthBread products, the effects of choice of milling fraction and particle size, process and formulation were systematically studied. This resulted in WB+ and WG+ and WB++ products with optimized product quality. WB+ breads containing >6% dietary fibre, were obtained with key quality parameters comparable to or even higher when compared to white bread. For WB++, containing >9% dietary fibre, the key quality criteria of standard wholegrain bread could be met. All results were captured in a product database and predictive models of the measured effects were computed. These tools can assist product development within, but also after the project, since the findings can well be applied more generally, for all types of bread where a combination of high levels of bran or aleurone with soft texture and high volume is aimed at.

During the course of the project it appeared that the SME bakers were mainly interested in the WB+ product. Therefore further improvements were focused on this product type. A second desire of the bakers was to develop clean label, natural products, without any additives like emulsifiers. The further optimizations were obtained by combining all technological developments – selected milling fraction, with pre-fermentation, and optimized enzyme cocktails, both commercially available ones and cocktails with innovative enzymes of project partner Dyadic. Based on the main effects of these trials TNO computed a regression model. Results in Figure 6, Annex 1, By the stepwise improvements, as illustrated in Figure 6, Annex 1, by consecutive selecting a good milling fraction, optimising bioprocessing, and, thereafter, optimising enzyme mixtures in the dough. breads with a sensorial quality comparable or even higher than white bread were obtained, while the nutritional quality is comparable to, or even higher than wholegrain bread. These results allowed the bakers to develop WB+ products with highly appreciated bread quality. The SME bakers, and their consumers, regarded these products as superior to white bread, as they combine high nutritional quality with light-coloured, soft and tasteful breads.

3.5. Nutrition and health benefits of HealthBread products and nutrients of concern

For ensuring relevant information to consumers regarding nutrition and health benefits we made an inventory of nutritional needs in Europe in relation to the nutrients present in HealthBread products and we assessed the options compatible with European regulations and with EFSA policies.

Nutrients of concern

- The intake of dietary fibre in all EU countries is much lower than recommended by nutrition experts and authoritative bodies. They recommend a higher intake of fibre of natural sources (e.g. from whole grains, fruits and vegetables) instead of isolated purified fibre, since these naturally present fibres are associated with other beneficial compounds: minerals, B-vitamins and a wide range of other beneficial compounds, such as antioxidants. Especially the intake of fibre from whole grain and bran is highly recommended in recent guidelines, since this is associated with a wide range of health benefits, ranging from a good intestinal function (no constipation) to reduced risks for heart diseases, diabetes type-2 and colon cancer.

- Intake of iron, folate, and also zinc and magnesium is too low for parts of the population. Whole grain and high fibre products are supplying these compounds. Whole grain products can be a source of iron, zinc and magnesium, but uptake by the body of iron and zinc can be limited since they are bound for a major part to phytate. Fermentation processes can help in breaking down phytate and liberating these minerals, due to the action of the native phytase enzyme in wheat and/ or added food grade phytase. Such processes also help in increasing bioavailability of ferulic acid, an important antioxidant in wheat. By applying such fermentation processes and thereby increasing bioavailability health benefits beyond ‘common’ whole grain products can be realised.

HealthBread products - communication of nutrition and health benefits to consumers

Based on a thorough study of the EU Claims Regulation (EC) 1924/2006 and related Directives and communications, we extracted relevant information for SME bakers and summarised this as part of the HealthBread Bakers Manual. Since this is the first time ever that this is communicated to bakers, the key messages of the Nutrition and Health story in this Manual are included below.

The real story of… nutrition (Part of the HealthBread Bakers Manual)

Communications about the nutritional value of your product or the ingredients are called ‘Nutritional claims’. Information about nutritional value of your product is regulated by EU Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006. Communication of the nutritional value is only possible if you can prove with quantitative data that the nutrient is above a certain level in the product you sell.

The following rules have to be taken into account:
- Source of fibre can be stated for products with at least 3g total dietary fibre/100g product.
- High in fibre: total dietary fibre levels of at least 6g/100g product are required. Note: total dietary fibre levels in white bread are around 3g/100g; levels in wholemeal bread are well above 6g/100.
- Contains (x %) more fibre than a similar product can be stated when the product is at least a source of fibre and contains at least 30% more fibre than a similar product.
- Source of a mineral or a vitamin can be stated when 100g of the product contains at least 15% of the Daily Reference Intake (DRI) of this mineral or vitamin.
- High in mineral or vitamin can be stated for levels of at least 30% of the DRI/ 100g product. Note: always specific minerals or vitamins should be mentioned.
- Contains (30%) more statements are not allowed for vitamins and minerals. Note: for anti-oxidants no health claims have been approved. Their presence can be mentioned but emphasizing health benefits of anti-oxidants is not allowed.

Daily Reference Intake (DRI) levels of selected minerals and vitamins (in mg/100g; from Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011)/EC) are also included in the Bakers Manual.

The real story of… health (Part of the HealthBread Bakers Manual)

Statements about the effects on health from a product (or from the nutrients it contains) are called ‘health claims’. EU (Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006) allows only claims authorised by EFSA, based on convincing scientific evidence. Official national dietary guidelines are usually based on probable scientific evidence. Regarding bread, dietary guidelines recommend consumption of wholemeal bread and dietary fibre from grains, but health claims are only permitted for specific health benefits of specific grain fibres, vitamins and minerals.

For HealthBread products the following health claims can be considered:
Wheat bran fibre Increased faecal bulk Product should be “high fibre” (at least 6%).
Wheat bran fibre Accelerated intestinal transit Product should be “high fibre” (at least 6%).
Daily intake ≥ 10g of fibre required.
Vitamins, minerals
Specific claims for each substance are required. A wide range of autorised claims can be used.
See http://ec.europa.eu/nuhclaims.
Product should be at least a ‘source of’ the specific mineral or vitamin. Most likely candidates: Iron, manganese, zinc, folate.

When a health claim for a material is made, the amount per 100g product has to be mentioned.
In each country and language specific arrangements are in place for the permitted wording of the claim and the required additional information. Your local HealtBread partner can assist you.

Many claims for vitamins / minerals are not appealing (e.g. “Zinc contributes to normal DNA synthesis”). Some may be more attractive (e.g. “Iron contributes to a reduction of tiredness and fatigue”).

By using the guidelines as stated in the Bakers Manual, each bakery made a nutrition and health message of its HealthBread concept product, based on the results of the outsourced analysis of levels of fibre and micro-nutrients, taking into account the nutrients of concern, Regulation 1924/2006 and the type of message that may appeal to its clients. As an example the message of Bakery Fusè’s Satutello Healthbread product is given below:

"SALUTELLO: Il pane di HealthBread - Good and healthy!
A varied and balanced diet is the foundation of a healthy lifestyle and ensures the intake of all the nutrients you need. In practice, however, in everyday life, we consume less fibre than recommended and our diet is often deficient in folic acid (vitamin B9) and iron (this especially for women).This bread is high in fibre naturally present in wheat, and is a source of folic acid, iron, magnesium and zinc! Why are these nutrients important? The fibre contributes to normal bowel function. Folic acid, iron, magnesium and zinc have several important functions including contributing to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue and the normal function of the immune system and muscle."
In addition to this information a table with the levels of relevant macro- and micronutrients was shown in the promotional leaflet.

HealthBread made available on its website the Nutrition Guideline, a comprehensive document providing information on:
- Health benefits of cereal fibre and wholegrain.
- Nutrients of concern (too low intake), based on reports in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and all over Europe.
- EU Regulation (EC)1924/2006 on Nutrition and Health Claims on Food and (EU) 1169/2011 on levels of nutrients qualifying for ‘source of’ or ‘high in’ statements.
- Issues about bioaccessibility/bioavailability especially of iron and zinc and their binding to phytate.
- Anti-oxidants in wheat, and the absence of possibilities for claiming health benefits.
The Nutrition Guideline is targeted to dieticians and nutritionists interested to know more about (communication of) nutrition and health benefits of HealthBread.

3.6 Product development by bakeries, consumer testing and business development

Product development
Product development by HealthBread bakeries started in the 2nd project year. Important steps were:
- Selection of preferred wheat fraction (November 2013)
- Presentation of and discussion about ‘interim’ concept products (February 2014) and development plus translation of on-line consumer test (validated by expert)
- Final concept development and consumer testing by five bakeries. (May-June 2014)
- Launching of successfully tested products (post-project work; June-Sept. 2014)
All bakeries choose for development of WB+ products with at least 6% fibre. Due to differences in composition and processing all products, although fitting in the WB+ concept, were quite different. A summary of the developed products is presented in Table 2, Annex 1.

Consumer testing
1400 consumers of 5 project partners - bakeries Ripken (Germany), Lasser and Kasses (Austria), Regazzoni and Fusè (Italy) - assessed in a consumer test standard bread and their developed HealthBread bread. The new product was offered as free sample in the bakery shop to customers when they bought a regular product. Customers were asked to respond to the questionnaire developed Regular customers were most interesting because they might want to replace a standard product with the new HealthBread product, with additional nutrition and health benefits. Consumers were informed about the HealthBread product by a flyer with the health message of the bread. The flyers with health messages for communication to consumers were made in close cooperation between the bakery, its mentoring partner and the WP3 leader. As basis for the health message the results of outsourced analyses was used. It was mentioned that the HealthBread project was part of the EU FP7 programme.

Main findings of the consumer testing were:
- > 75% will recommend the HealthBread to others
- Taste and health aspects are seen as the two key benefits of the product
- 65 – 85% considers the HealthBread as healthier than the regular bread
- About 70% is willing to pay more for the HealthBread product

Based on these results five bakeries have launched their HealthBread bread, as a premium product (indicated blue and bold in Table 2 in Annex 1). Bakery Welter, one of the two German bakers in HealthBread, had to decide to not engage in concept product development activities, due to a lack of available manpower. The two Dutch bakeries considered their concept products of insufficient quality for consumer testing. They continued with product development, also after the project and are planning to launch a one or more products in the first half of 2015.

In a feasibility study project partner Open Fields supported two Italian SME bakeries, non-project partners, with the development of a concept products, nutrient analysis, a nutrition health message for consumers and consumer testing. Within two months, both bakeries developed and tested it with positive results. One of them has now launched his HealthBread product.

The HealthBread Bakers Manual
For supporting the bakers as well as their mentoring partners in product development an internal Bakers Manual was made at the start of year two and updated at regular intervals. Based on the experience with and use of this document we concluded that for stimulating new SME bakeries for developing their HealthBread type product a short document with attractive lay-out will be optimal for communicating essential basic messages and stimulating craftsmanship and creativity. Clear guidelines for does and don’ts in communication of nutrition and health benefits were also seen as essential. The HealthBread Bakers Manual has been issued in English, Dutch, German and Italian.
Potential Impact:
4.0 Actual and potential impact

The project and its results:
- have already an actual impact for the business development of the industry participants,
- will probably have a much larger potential socio-economic impact for SME bakeries in Europe and their innovativeness and profitability,
- and, when this is realized, will have a wider societal impact regarding contributing to a healthier diet and thereby public health in Europe.

Impact on business and innovation of HealthBread partners

- Five SME bakeries/project-partners and one other SME bakery have already included a HealthBread type bread as a premium product in their product range; thereby contributing to the profitability of their business. The two Dutch bakeries are very determined to follow with launches of HealthBread products, in 2015.
- The wheat fraction supplying partners, KFI, TAN and GEO, realised innovation by developing the production processes for these fractions and are benefiting from the sales, delivering higher margins than sales of more common flour or fractions.
- Project partner DNL has now initiated the processes leading to the Food Grade status of their enzymes used in the project, and will thereby expand its business to the bakery sector.

Impact on business and innovation of SME bakeries in Europe

The attractive natural HealthBread products represent significant innovation in the bakery sector as being:
- high in fibre and a source of important micronutrients
- supported with well substantiated nutrition and health claims (no ‘fancy stories’!)
- made with specific wheat fractions mild in taste, high in fibre and micronutrients
- processed by using fermentation processes of long duration
HealthBread has shown that this concept of outlining basic principles of HealthBread product development – and giving room for an own interpretation/ unique product for creative craft bakeries – is a proven way for innovation AND profitability. The long, often specific fermentation processes are, generally speaking more compatible with SME bakeries than with large industrial bread producers.
Stimulated and supported by the multiple communication, dissemination and demonstration efforts during (and post-project) a wide range of SME bakeries in Europe are expected to adopt this innovative and profitable HealthBread approach.

Contributing to a healthier diet for Europeans

Nutritional recommendations in Europe recommend an intake of dietary fibre significantly higher than actual intake consumed by Europeans. They also emphasise intake of fibre naturally present in fruits, vegetables and wholegrain, whereas recent recommendations emphasise the importance of intake of fibre form grains. In observational nutrition studies these fibres show a stronger correlation with beneficial health effects (risk reduction for heart diseases, diabetes type-2 and cancer).
- HealthBread type breads - with more than twice as much cereal fibre and higher levels of important nutrients (i.e. folate, iron, magnesium and zinc) purchased by consumers, will contribute to their healthier diets. By the expected wider introduction of these products through SME bakeries in Europe such a shift to healthier diets will become relevant across Europe.

List of Websites:
Public website address www.healthbread.eu
Coordinator: Jan Willem van der Kamp. jan-willem.vanderkamp@tno.nl