Woolworths Announces Removal of Artificial Additives From In-Store Baked Bread

“There are few things better in life than freshly baked bread and at Woolworths, we’ve made our fresh bread even better. Our customers have provided very clear feedback that they are concerned about additives in their food, so we have made our in-store baked bread free from these artificial additives,” said Alex Holt, Woolworths’ Head of Bakery.

28 Sep 2012 --- In a first for Australian supermarkets, Woolworths announced that from today over 70 lines of its fresh in-store baked bread is free from artificial colours, flavours, emulsifiers and preservatives.

Consumers are demanding more natural products and Woolworths has responded by removing vegetable emulsifiers 471, 472 and 481, acidity regulator 297 and antioxidant 306 from the fresh bread that is baked in 560 Woolworths stores every day.

“There are few things better in life than freshly baked bread and at Woolworths, we’ve made our fresh bread even better.  Our customers have provided very clear feedback that they are concerned about additives in their food, so we have made our in-store baked bread free from these artificial additives,” said Alex Holt, Woolworths’ Head of Bakery.

“Parents are particularly concerned about the presence of artificial flavours, colours, emulsifiers and preservatives in the food they give their kids, so we are proud to be able to say that Woolies’ fresh baked bread is now free from these additives and reassure our consumers that they can feel good about purchasing it.”

In an independent study commissioned by Woolworths , consumers said buying products without artificial colours, flavours or preservatives was more important to them than seeking out products that are free from trans-fats or products that are high in vitamins or antioxidants.

Woolworths has worked very closely with its suppliers to ensure that the quality and taste of the 2.3 million fresh sandwich loaves, bread rolls and crusty bread products that are baked in store every week around Australia remain at the same high standard.

The removal of artificial colours, flavours, emulsifiers and preservatives from fresh in-store baked bread builds on the work that Woolworths has undertaken to help consumers make healthier choices in recent years, including:

- Woolworths removed 265 tonnes of salt from in-store bakery bread in 2011
- In 2012, Woolworths rolled out front-of-pack nutritional labelling across 100% of its own brand products that carry a nutrition information panel
- Woolworths voluntarily provides a full fat breakdown on nutrition information panels to include trans, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, in addition to the total and saturated fats listings, which are compulsory labelling requirements
- Woolworths is an active member of the Food & Health Dialogue, a joint government / industry / public health initiative, and continues to reformulate products targeting nutrients such as sodium and saturated fat

95 per cent of Woolworths’ fresh baked products, or 9.6 million fresh baked products per month, will now be free from artificial colours, flavours, emulsifiers or preservatives.