The bakery and pastry industry is reaching production figures similar to those prior to the pandemic.

The Spanish Association of the Bakery, Pastry, and Confectionery Industry (ASEMAC) presents the economic data of the last fiscal year, with increases in both production and turnover of frozen dough.

The industrial bakery and pastry industry in Spain has consolidated the recovery of lost production of frozen dough during the health crisis, approaching the record production achieved in 2018, when 969,519 tons were produced. Last year, 949,754 tons of frozen dough were produced, an increase of 5.1% compared to 2021, which amounted to 903,477 tons. This has also translated into a 27.4% increase in turnover, from €1,303.79 million in 2021 to €1,661.14 million in 2022, primarily due to inflation registered over the past year.

According to the latest ASEMAC data, bread production in Spain in 2022 reached a volume of 745,896 tons, representing a 4.1% increase compared to 2021 production data. As for pastries, production in 2022 reached a volume of 203,858 tons, registering a variation of 9% compared to 2021. In terms of turnover, bread, with a 26.3% increase compared to 2021 data, recorded a total of €988.86 million. Meanwhile, the turnover of pastries and confectionery reached €672.27 million, representing a 29% increase compared to 2021. "We are growing again this year, particularly in the pastry segment, perhaps because it had declined significantly due to the closure of the hospitality sector for almost a year. The growth is satisfactory, and we also see that during the first three months of 2023, it is following the same trend," highlighted Felipe Ruano, president of ASEMAC.

The press conference presenting ASEMAC's data also featured the Director-General of the Food Industry at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food, José Miguel Herrero, who stated that behind these figures lies the reactivation of consumption through tourism. He also highlighted the innovative role of the bakery, pastry, and confectionery industries and the efforts made in product reformulation towards healthier options. Additionally, he emphasized that "bread is one of the foods that generates the most waste but, at the same time, has more lives. Right now, we are developing the campaign 'Nothing is wasted here: seven lives food.' Bread can have more than seven lives, and in fact, there are hundreds of recipes linked to the use of bread. In the future Law for the Prevention of Food Loss and Waste, bread will always be one of the examples we give because of its versatility."

Evolution of the Last 8 Years

Considering the variation from 2015 to 2022 regarding total production, last year's figures are 6.2% higher than those of that year, demonstrating a very consistent growth in the sector in terms of production, with a consistently positive trend except for 2020 and 2021, which were severely affected by the impact of the health crisis.

The variation in bread production in tons from 2015 to 2022 has been -0.6%. On the other hand, the variation in pastry production represents +41.6%.