Baking & Snack - October 2018 - 16

Great Harvest Bakery
exploring global expansion

Global consumers strike
balance between health
and indulgence
The desire for health and wellness isn't driven by geography.
Consumers all over the world have become increasingly aware of
what they're eating and where that food is coming from.
"The similarities and connections between the US and international markets are very strong," said Robb MacKie, president and
CEO, the American Bakers Association.
To share data on US clean label and health-and-wellness trends
and to share thoughts on best practices based on those trends, Mr.
MacKie sat down with Mark Hotze, vice-president, North America,
for Corbion, Inc., Lenexa, KS, and Brian Dwyer, vice-president of
manufacturing for the Kroger Co., Cincinnati, on the stage at iba,
held in Munich.
Mr. MacKie suggested that it's more important than ever for bakers to strike a balance between the claims on better-for-you products and the indulgence that often comes with baked foods. The
question remains: Is there room for both?
"The indulgent category is still very important to our shoppers,"
Mr. Dwyer said. "Our stores are laid out so that when you walk into
a Kroger, you come through the in-store bakery first, and a lot of
those indulgent items are right there."
While people's desire for indulgence remains, they want to
feel better about their choices. From a formulating perspective,
Corbion also does not believe that health-and-wellness and indulgence are mutually exclusive. "Consumers want food to taste good,"
Mr. Hotze said. "At the end of the day, that's the discussion."
The company has seen a rapid rise in sales for health-and-wellness types of foods. In fact, the company's Simple Truth and Simple
Truth Organic private label products have seen the fastest-growing sales of any brand Kroger has rolled out, said Mr. Dwyer.
Above: (From left) Mark Hotze, vice-president, sales, North America at Corbion; Robb
MacKie, president and CEO, American Bakers Association; and Brian Dwyer, vice-president
of manufacturing operations, the Kroger Co., discussed the opportunities and challenges
associated with clean label bakery products at iba.

16 Baking & Snack October 2018 / www.bakingandsnack.com

World Franchise Associates, London, an international franchise development consultancy, marketing and media company,
has reached an agreement to represent Dillon, MT-based Great
Harvest Bakery as the latter explores growth opportunities in
Europe, Scandinavia, UK, Japan and Canada.
Founded in 1976, Great Harvest operates more than 200 locations across the US, all of which offer breakfast, sandwiches, grain
bowls, soups, salads, pastries and desserts. In 2017, the company
introduced a "hub-and-spoke" franchise model, which allowed
for rapid expansion across the US.
Under the model, franchisees can purchase a large territory
that includes a single Great Harvest Bakery operation and as
many cafe-only units as they want in surrounding towns. The
bakery locations are equipped with ovens and ample space to produce and deliver the hand-milled bread to the nearby cafe-only
locations throughout the day. Now, Great Harvest is turning to
a global franchising group to expand its franchise portfolio outside the US.
"Great Harvest is an exceptional brand for investors," said Paul
Cairnie, CEO of World Franchise Associates. "Everything is made
fresh, on site and locally - nothing frozen or packaged. The
brand's freedom franchise model allows for flexibility for success,
including menu, pricing, local decor/design."
- Eric Schroeder, Food Business News

General Mills to enhance
employee benefits
To meet the needs of its evolving workforce, General Mills,
Minneapolis, added new features to its employee benefits package.
The changes include more paid leave to provide salaried employees and non-union production workers a better work-life balance.
"We spent a lot of time talking with employees at different life
stages and asking questions about their pain points and what contributes to feeling torn between work and home," said Jacqueline
Williams-Roll, chief human resources officer, General Mills.
The company will roll out changes in January 2019 in three areas: parental leave, bereavement and short-term disability.
When new birth mothers take parental leave, they will receive
paid time off for 18 to 20 weeks, while fathers, partners and adoptive parents may take 12 weeks off. For bereavement, workers will
be able to take up to four weeks off work following the death of an
immediate family member. Employees looking to take short-term
disability can receive 100% paid time off for up to eight weeks on
the company's updated plan.
In addition, caregiver leave has been added to General Mills'
benefits package.

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Baking & Snack - October 2018

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