Baking & Snack - April 2024 - 98

featured technical expert Q&A
Drew Ladd
IFF
Drew Ladd has loved baking since he was a kid. Today, he's committed
to inspiring that love of baking in the next generation.
Ladd grew up baking through the 4-H program, and coming
from a family of Kansas State University (KSU) graduates, he was
drawn to the school's bakery science program.
" During my time at KSU, I was exposed to the industry
through the American Society of Baking (ASB) and got to see
firsthand what a great industry it is, " he said. " It's unique and inspiring
to know that so many spend their entire careers here and
build a great network and camaraderie along the way. "
As a member of ASB, Ladd has been instrumental in shaping
the Young Professional committee and the Product Development
Competition. He says helping both grow over the years has been
incredibly rewarding.
" Giving back and helping inspire and recruit new, young bakers
to our industry through ASB is something I'm really proud
of, " he said.
Ladd also contributes to the Bakers National Education
Foundation, which offers financial support to train bakers and allied
personnel. Supporting the next generation of bakers this way
helps combat the skills gap seen in many bakeries today, which
Ladd said is one of the biggest challenges facing the industry. He
has observed a lack of understanding about the baking process,
ingredient functionality and how both tie together.
" It can be difficult for plant personnel to troubleshoot without
a solid understanding of ingredients,
making it hard for them
to keep up with the technology, "
Ladd said. " As an ingredient supplier,
we need to continue to develop
technology that has a wide range of
tolerance to different processes and environments
to help bridge this gap. "
Ladd graduated from KSU with a bachelor's degree in bakery
science and began his career in plant operations as a production
supervisor and superintendent, later beccoming a director
of continuous improvement. Ladd then transitioned to a chocolate
and confectionery company as a senior manager of industrial
performance. He continued as process technology manager,
overseeing new product commercialization and updating the
ingredients and packaging of existing products. Now in his 11th
year in the industry, Ladd works as IFF's senior R&D designer,
developing new products and supporting ingredient innovation.
" I love being hands-on and active in the lab, baking and problem
solving, " Ladd said. " I've spent most of my career in operations,
so I'm really enjoying connecting what we see in the lab to
what could be happening on the production floor. Getting to be a
part of developing a product from the lab to the production line
is exciting. "
Here, Ladd discusses improving baked products via emulsifiers.
What do emulsifiers bring to a bakery formulation?
Emulsifiers have a few different functions in bakery formulations.
Their main functions involve improving crumb softness and dough
strengthening. Baked products containing emulsifiers typically have
improved volume, structure and dough handling properties. They
play a big part in enabling easy processing of the doughs. As most
processes are automated today, emulsifiers help strengthen the gluten
structure, resulting in a uniform crumb and good volume.
What are some of the challenges emulsifiers
can help address?
Emulsifiers can improve overall structure in cakes by creating a
tighter crumb structure which traps air in the batter. In breads,
emulsifiers are typically used to improve the dough's strength and
crumb softness throughout shelf life. Emulsifiers are a great benefit
to doughs during processing. Most automated processes continue
to break down the gluten matrix after the dough has left the
mixing bowl. Emulsifiers help strengthen that gluten matrix by
cross-linking the gluten-forming proteins. In gluten-free products,
98 Baking & Snack April 2024 / www.bakingbusiness.com
emulsifiers can help replace some of the structure lost from the
lack of gluten and retain gas production to get better volume.
Why might fats and oils need an emulsifier
in certain applications?
Emulsifiers' main function is to bring non-homogeneous ingredients
together, like oil and water. Binding these together creates a
uniform and consistent mixture. Keeping these together makes for
a better eating experience and is an easy way to retain moisture in a
product. This keeps cakes moist and breads soft.
How can bakers optimize the functionality of
emulsifier ingredients in their bakery formulations?
Emulsifiers are impacted by many factors like most ingredients.
One emulsifier won't work in all products or through all processes.
Understanding the final characteristics of the final product can
help decide on the emulsifier to use. Since so many factors can impact
final product quality, it's important to understand the role you
need emulsifiers to play in the product. Also you must understand
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