Managing bakery waste not a cakewalk
Do you visit bakeries for a sweet treat? And have you ever wondered what happens to the unsold bread? Lately, on Chinese social media, the topic of “how bakeries handle unsold food” has been buzzing.
Some customers gripe that as closing time nears, some bakeries toss out pricey bread and pastries in bulk, preferring waste over discounts.
Others lament — “The prices are too steep; it’s been ages since I’ve had any.”
Indeed, finding bread under 10 yuan (US$1.3) in bakeries is rare these days, with some loaves priced at 50 or 60 yuan.
With sky-high prices on one side and high wastage on the other, how did this distorted production and sales model come about?
A short shelf life
Unlike ice cream, bread sits on shelves at room temperature, leading to a short shelf life. If unsold by day’s end, it’s often discarded.
“Freshly baked bread lasts only 24 hours, while packaged bread lasts three days,” explained a bakery manager in Wan’an, Jiangxi Province, in an interview with Xinhua news agency. “To maintain taste and quality, near-expiry bread must be removed from shelves.”
Given the short shelf life, why not reduce production?
First and foremost, a full shelf creates a visual impact, stimulating customers’ desire to purchase, says a bakery manager.
Moreover, reducing the variety of bread types fails to meet the diverse demands of customers.
“Young people nowadays prefer freshness, so we need to constantly introduce new varieties,” said Lu Liang, a Shanxi Province bakery owner.
However, some netizens noticed that some businesses would rather toss bread than offer discounts.
A bakery owner admitted: “We are concerned that customers waiting for discounted bread may negatively impact daytime sales.”
Additionally, this approach doesn’t incur any “penalty” for owners.
“Businesses have already calculated the cost of wastage into pricing,” noted Zhu Danpeng, a food industry analyst.
When bread doesn’t sell, it’s tossed. Isn’t there a better way to deal with this?
Some bakeries, like the one in Yichun, Jiangxi Province, give away nearexpiration products for free.
“If bread remains unsold on the second day after being baked, we discount it for sale,” said a bakery’s manager.
“If it’s still unsold on the third day, around 6pm, we give it away to sanitation workers or delivery riders.”
As well as donations, some businesses sell unsold items through “blind boxes,” popular among youngsters.
A bakery on Yuyuan Road in Shanghai launches a one-hour limited-time bread blind box sale every night from 8pm to 9pm, with monthly sales surpassing 400 orders.
One customer enthused: “This is great; it reduces food waste and allows everyone to purchase bread at an affordable price.”
In fact, lots of bakeries struggle with what to do with unsold bread at closing time.
Some can send it to stores with channels for recycling into animal feed, but many just toss it out instead of donating it to people in need, according to a seasoned baking instructor.
“Sharing demands effort and can potentially lead to challenges,” he explained.
To improve this, Zhu recommends that businesses should proactively shift away from extensive production models and adopt precise distribution strategies.
“Implementing specific regulations for waste reduction and standardized operational procedures would foster a healthier and more sustainable industry,” Zhu added.