Insight from FEDIMA - European bakery and pastry ingredients manufacturers Annual Industry Update in the 2024 edition of the Baking Europe Ingredients Market (BEIM) Report.
Enzymes are ubiquitous and used in everyday applications
Enzymes are proteins that act as biological catalysts by accelerating chemical reactions, and vital components of any living organism: microorganisms, plants, animals and humans. We all produce enzymes in our body, for example to enable the digestion of the food we consume.
Enzymes are versatile and used to produce various foods, such as dairy products, baked goods, and beverages. In the baking industry, enzymes are used in the manufacturing process of, among others, bread. One of their purposes is to convert starch into sugars which subsequently can be fermented by yeasts and enable the CO2 production required for raising the dough. They are also used by bakers to make products of consistent quality by enabling better dough handling, providing fat-repellent properties, and controlling crumb texture, colour, taste, moisture, and volume.
Enzymes used in the baking processes are safe for consumers
Food enzymes have been used in food and drink production for centuries, for example in cheese making, beer brewing and dough leavening. For a long time, their properties were unknown, but their application became wide in the food sector in the twentieth century, when they began being isolated from living cells.
The quick spread of enzyme uses in food and baked goods manufacturing processes led to increased attention to be paid to their safety. As of today, all food enzymes are thoroughly assessed, tested and approved by food safety authorities around the world.
In the EU, the use of food enzymes is regulated by the European Commission: enzyme producers that intend to make use of enzymes in food production must submit a dossier to the European Commission that will then mandate the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) to perform a thorough safety evaluation.
In sum, with more than a century worth of studies and meticulous evaluation by food safety authorities, food enzymes are proven to be safe for consumers.
Enzymes must be safely handled by professional workers
Speaking of safety, the main concern usually associated with enzymes is not their consumption as part of the final product, but rather the dustiness of their powder forms during the production phase. As a matter of fact, it is known that enzymes may induce respiratory sensitisation and irritation if inhaled.
However, this can be easily avoided. To ensure high safety for enzyme profession users, producers have developed granulated, low-dust formulations. For workers of the baked goods industry, AMFEP and Fedima developed a set of guidelines on safe handling of enzymes in the bakery supply chain, providing insights, best practices and tools to control dust formation, thus safeguarding the health of workers throughout the baking industry. Specific measures to minimise dust formation, the use of respiratory protective equipment and occupational exposure monitoring are key elements in managing the enzyme exposure of baking professional.
Fedima collaborates closely with AMFEP, the Association of Manufacturers and Formulators of Enzyme Products, in a joint working group called AFES. Together, Fedima and AMFEP develop useful materials on the use of enzymes in baking.
Check out our new poster on Enzymes in Bakery Products!
Occupational health and safety are a priority for Fedima, and particular attention is paid to the safe use of enzymes in bakery productions. To safeguard the health of bakery workers, Fedima and AMFEP have developed guidelines for the safe handling of enzymes in the bakery value chain, and a series of informative webinars.
What about sustainability?
Due to their large positive effects on processing, enzymes may help in reducing dough mixing time and in reducing baking time and baking temperature, and thus lead to reduced energy consumption. Enzymes ease the handling of the dough, which is especially good for the craft bakers, but their benefits are seen also in industrial production lines.
With climate change, the properties of flours from field crops are changing. A good quality bread, with volume and a soft crumb, requires flour with sugars that can be fermented by yeasts during the bread-making process. In this regard, enzymes are indispensable as flour and milling correctors to get a fermentable flour and improve dough handling.