Baker - Modern Bakers

Modern Bakers

Today bakers work in varying environments both as employees and sometimes owning their own stores. Bakers can be found working in:

• Large factories. These produce bread and related products which are then transported to numerous sale or consumption points throughout a region. These normally include supermarkets, restaurants, various fast food outlets, convenience stores, and the like. Bakers in these environments are largely there for quality control as machines take care of much of the labour intensive aspect of the job.
• Small Independent bakeries. These are largely family-run businesses. They may specialise in particular types of products, such as rye bread, sourdough, Italian bread, French bread, pita bread or bagels. They may supply nearby restaurants, grocers, or delicatessens with particular style(s) of bread. Independent bakeries often sell directly to the public from a store or counter at the bakery.
• Chain stores. Recent years have seen the rise of chain stores selling the same range of products. Bakers in these stores bake according to a pre-determined recipe book. This can lead to frustration as some bakers do not agree with techniques used by the franchising model. However, the recipes used tend to be well-founded, and popular with the paying public.