World Bread Day

Bread. Geraud pfeiffer / pexels / 2019 / CC0 1.0

The 16th of October is World Bread Day.

Bread gets a bad rap these days, and is being blamed for so many people being overweight. And no wonder it’s singled out as an easy culprit: commercial supermarket bread has a shocking amount of unnecessary fat and sugar snuck into it!

But quality, artisanal bread is in a whole different category, and there’s nothing like smelling bread as it is baking in the house, and then enjoying a warm slice of it afterward with a crispy crust and butter melting on it.

Have you ever eaten in restaurants where you are charged extra for a basket of bread? What do you think of the practice? In Italy, the charge is called “la coperta” (meaning “the cover”).

Bread is the staple food in many parts of the world, and even has ritualistic importance on many occasions.

But, bread is one of the highest-waste item foods in our kitchens:

“One of the biggest food waste culprits in the UK is the humble loaf of bread, where 44% of bread is wasted each year! This is because often people do not finish a whole loaf in time and worry it’s stale, so they throw it away. The crusts, in particular, are often disposed of, as many do not like the end slice of the loaf. However, while this can seem harmless, this amounts to 1.2 billion edible bread crusts binned each year.” ^[1]
Elphick, Laura. How to reduce your food waste footprint. EIT Food. 4 March 2021. Accessed April 2021 at https://www.futurelearn.com/info/blog/reduce-your-food-waste-footprint

Bread is very easy to preserve to stop it going to waste. Bread can be frozen with little preparation needed, or broken up into small pieces and just set out on a plate to dry to make bread crumbs.

World Bread Day is now coordinated by the blogger behind Kochtopf, a woman named Zorra, who is a Swiss writer living in Andulusia, Spain. If you are a blogger, she invites you to do a post about bread and post it on the 16th of October (not before, or after), and then tag her to let her know (see https://www.kochtopf.me/ for details.)

World Bread Day coincides with World Food Day.

#WorldBreadDay #WelttagdesBrotes

See also: Bread, Bread bins, Bread couches, Bread knives, Bread pans, Bread machines, French bread pans, Bread rationing ends in the UK,

Resources

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/worldbreadday/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/worldbreadday

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.de/kochtopf/world-bread-day/

Past World Bread Day summaries

Are you interested in the topic of reducing food waste? Consider this free online micro-course from the University of Reading, “From Waste to Value: How to Tackle Food Waste“. The challenge of bread waste is a topic that arises many times in the course.

Activities for today

• Buy a candle that smells like fresh baked bread when it is burning;
• try a no-knead bread recipe;
• treat yourself to a new bread pan or some bread-making tools you’ve been wanting;
• try drying a few pieces of bread to make your own bread crumbs;
• making a bread pudding, savoury or sweet.

Recipes

• King Arthur Flour Bread Recipes
• National Festival of Breads (Kansas Wheat Board)
• New York Times No-Knead Loaf
• Barm Brack Recipe
• Challah (Bread Machine Recipe)
• Cornstarch Glaze for Bread or Rolls
• Dinner Rolls Recipe
• Sandwich bread (light)

Leftover bread recipes to reduce bread waste

• Bread Sauce Recipe
• Caramelized Bread & Butter Pudding
• Cheese and Bread Bake for Breakfast Recipe
• Marmalade Pudding Recipe
• Mrs Tiddlewinks Cheese and Tomato Bread Pudding
• Mushroom Bread Pie Recipe
• Queen of Hearts Bread Pudding Recipe
• Savoury Bread ‘n Butter Pudding Recipe

In other languages

• German: Welttag des Brotes;
• French: Journée mondiale du pain;
• Spanish: El día mundial del pan.

History

In 1974, there was a reference to a World Bread Day being on the 8th of October:

“The Kansas Wheat Centennial emblem will be appearing on packages of baked products throughout the state this month, as bakers and pastry shop owners observe the Centennial year and the World Day of Bread. Many bakers will begin using the Wheat Centennial stickers on Oct. 8 in conjunction with World Bread Day activities.” — Scandia, Kansas: Scandia Journal. Thursday, 3 October 1974. Page 4, col. 2.

The first print mention that CooksInfo is aware of to a World Bread Day on the 16th of October dates from 2014 in California:

“Thursday [16 October 2014] — Dough Nation: In a collaboration between the OC Baking Company and Provisions Market, a variety of fresh-baked breads will be sold for a $10 donation to the Share Our Selves Dough-Nation Center — a nonprofit dedicated to aiding homeless and low-income residents. Breads will be baked throughout the day. The event, taking place on World Bread Day, will be held from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. at Provisions Market, 143 No. Glassell St. in Orange.” — Santa Ana, California: Santa Ana Orange County Register. Wednesday, 15 October 2014. Page Food 2, col. 5.

The first year was 2006.

The day was started in 2006 by the International Union of Bakers and Bakers-Confectioners (UIBC):

“It was started 10 years ago by the International Union of Bakers and Bakers-Confectioners and has since been taken over by a German food blogger.” ^[2]Eat the Ball® Creates Awareness of World Bread Day (10/16) in the US Market. CSR Wire Press Releases. 14 October 2016. Accessed September 2021 at https://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/39363-eat-the-ball-creates-awareness-of-world-bread-day-10-16-in-the-us-market

Some sources say that today was picked to honour the creation of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN on this day in 1945, whose motto is “Fiat panis” — “Let there be bread”.

They were still promoting it as of 2009. CooksInfo is not clear on when exactly they stopped, and why.

World Bread Day 2009. Union of Bakers and Bakers-Confectioners Newsletter, June 2009.

Sources

Bakers — start your mixers. October 16 is World Bread Day. Kansas Wheat. Accessed September 2021 at https://eatwheat.org/learn/october-16-world-bread-day/

Campos, Othel V. Bakers, confectioners lead world celebration. Manila, Philippines: The Manila Standard. 15 October 2018. Accessed September 2021 at https://manilastandard.net/spotlight/special-report-world-bread-day/278057/bakers-confectioners-lead-world-celebration.html

Eat the Ball® Creates Awareness of World Bread Day (10/16) in the US Market. CSR Wire Press Releases. 14 October 2016. Accessed September 2021 at https://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/39363-eat-the-ball-creates-awareness-of-world-bread-day-10-16-in-the-us-market

Emile Henry. Celebrate World Bread Day by Picking Up Some Creative Bread Tools. New Castle, DE: Global News Wire. 16 October 2020. Accessed September 2021 at https://www.globenewswire.com/en/news-release/2020/10/16/2109817/0/en/Celebrate-World-Bread-Day-by-Picking-Up-Some-Creative-Bread-Tools.html

Kansas Wheat. You “knead” to celebrate World Bread Day on October 16. 15 October 2014. Accessed September 2021 at https://kswheat.com/news/you-knead-to-celebrate-world-bread-day-on-october-16

Mbonambi, Buhle. World Bread Day: Why don’t you try baking bread today? Johannesburg, South Africa: Independent Online. 16 October 2019. Accessed September 2021 at
https://www.iol.co.za/lifestyle/food-drink/world-bread-day-why-dont-you-try-baking-bread-today-35080241

World Bread Day 2021 – Einladung / Invitation. 16 September 2021. Accessed September 2021 at https://www.kochtopf.me/world-bread-day-2021