8 September – Natali Trepado – Beer Bread Winner

22 September – Marilyn Stroud – Jam Square Winner

6 October – Susan Uys – Cheese Scone Winner

Mpho has been baking since she was about 9 years old, baking every day with her grandmother after school. In those early years, baking was not a passion, it was simply one of her chores. It was years later, after studying, working and becoming a mother, that her life took a different turn. She decided to take a break from her demanding job and ended up going to Germany for three intensive months to do a baking course. On her return home, Mpho immediately started her own business. She says, “I had to buy some products and ingredients, but I also went around to all the businesses I could think of, asking for samples! I baked every day and I’ve never looked back.”

Although Mpho loves baking bread “with all her heart”, she also bakes cakes, croissants and baguettes, working on orders. While it certainly hasn’t been easy building a business, she has repeat customers who refuse to go anywhere else for their baked goods.

Mpho read about the Supreme Flour Top Baker competition in the Sunday Times Food Weekly. For Mpho as a self-employed home baker, what could be better than winning a substantial cash prize and a fantastic bread mixer? Mpho’s dream came true when she was announced as the winner, with her delicious Breakfast Loaf getting her through to the finals. Mpho says, “Participating in the Supreme Flour Top Baker competition has taught me to never take my skill and what I know for granted – and don’t down play it. For any young bakers out there who are not sure whether to pursue a career as a baker or not, know that it is tough, but if it’s your passion, go out there and do it with excellence.”

MEET THE SUPREME TOP BAKER WINNERS!

Congratulations to the 2015 Top Baker grand prizewinner, Mpho Tshweneyame, woth took home R50 000 in cash PLUS a MacAdams industrial cake mixer worth R14 500.

Our second prize of R20 000 went to Cherry Pin and the third prize of R10 000 went to Andrew Alexander.

Each of the remaining 5 finalists received R2 500 from Supreme, in acknowledgement of their hard work and exceptional baking skills:

Patricia Borsato
Mthokozisi Gumede
Christopher Mtshweni
Chloe Hajipetrou
Chris Oliver

WELL DONE FROM SUPREME FLOUR!

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNERS!

Supreme Flour today announced the winners of the Top Baker 2015 competition, at an awards ceremony held at Long Meadow Function Venue, Monte Casino. The top eight finalists were chosen after taking part in a live bread bake-off on 13 August. Mpho Tshweneyame was named as the Top Baker 2015 winner. She takes home the first prize of R50 000, plus a Macadams cake mixer worth R14 500. Cherry Pin was awarded second prize and wins R20 000, while Andrew Alexander was placed third and wins R10 000. The remaining five finalists all received R2 500 in cash.

Liezel van Bergen, Senior Brand Manager of RCL Food’s Milling & Baking Division, had this to say: “Congratulations to our Top Baker 2015 winners. The standard this year was truly excellent, so the judging was no easy task! We are delighted that Gauteng’s bread bakers have been so enthusiastic about Top Baker – this year we had over 800 entries, compared to 300 last year, our inaugural Top Baker compeition. That’s an increase of more than 260%!”

The Supreme Flour Top Baker competition has been established by Supreme in order to drive the passion of baking amongst aspirant young bakers of tomorrow and the professional bakers of today. It provides a credible platform for the recognition of bread bakers in the Gauteng region. The competition also provides the opportunity to introduce Supreme’s consistent quality wheat flour products to new bakers. During the course of the competition, bakers familiarise themselves with the numerous support and learning tools Supreme offers, such as Supreme’s interactive website, Baking Academy and the expertise of a top technical baking team.

Liezel van Bergen concludes, “It is heartwarming when an initiative such as the Supreme Top Baker competition provides someone with a real chance to change their life. For our 2014 winner, Motubatsi Mosia, Top Baker was a life changer. We are so excited to be offering our winner, Mpho, the opportunity to take a big leap forward in her career!”

With close to 100 years of history, Supreme has become one of South Africa’s most loved and trusted wheat flour brands. Established in 1919, the Supreme brand became a firm favourite amongst our country’s professional bakers. Supreme is known and respected for offering consistent quality, expertise and service, which has resulted in the brand being a significant player in the professional market. Supreme offers a range of wheat flours and prepared mixes, which are milled at RCL Food’s long-standing milling site in Pretoria.

SUPREME TOP BAKER 2015 WINNERS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=qxs2KQHiBXo

SUPREME TOP BAKER 2015 HIGHLIGHTS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KLMQdZGQi38

WHO WILL BE THE 2015 SUPREME FLOUR TOP BAKER? CHECK OUT ALL THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2015 COMPETITION HERE…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=KLMQdZGQi38

IT’S BEEN A BUMPER TWO MONTHS FOR THE SUPREME TOP BAKER COMPETITION.

We’ve captured 838 competition entries – that’s almost three times as many as last year!

This Friday and Saturday we look forward to the first round of judging, having divided the 838 entires into 4 time slots, to help with the sheer number of loaves we’ll be tasting.

By the end of Saturday, 08 August, we will have the names of our Top Eight – the very best bakers who will be going through to the Live Final Bakeof on Thursday, 13 August.

Supreme wishes all of our Gauteng bakers the very best.

SUPREME FLOUR AND SELATI SUGAR ARE PROUD SPONSORS OF THE BAKING THEATRE AT THIS YEARS GOOD FOOD & WINE SHOW, GAUTENG. FIND US AT THE BAKING THEATRE FROM 23-26 JULY 2015.

For over a decade, the Good Food & Wine Show has pushed the boundaries of innovation and excellence as South Africa’s premier food, wine and lifestyle experience, and this year we’ve cooked up something bigger and better than ever.

The Good Food & Wine Show comes to Johannesburg this month with one of the strongest line-ups of chefs in years…

Our celebrity chef line-up is a veritable who’s who of the modern kitchen, from MasterChef Australia’s Brent Owen to the “Croquembouche King” Adriano Zumbo. We are also privileged to have the UK’s Tom Parker-Bowles, John Torode and Reza Mahammad join us as well as our very own home-grown talent Siba Mtongana, the Giggling Gourmet Jenny Morris and a larder full of others. Their recipes, demonstrations and advice will ensure visitors to the show get a taste of the new and the extraordinary. MEET THE CHEFS

In addition, this year’s event will include highly entertaining and interactive event attractions as well as more than 200 exhibitors enabling visitors to discover what’s hot and trending on the culinary circuit in food, drink and appliances. There will also be delicious tasters, loads of free goodies and competition giveaways. PLAN YOUR DAY HERE

Bon appetit!

Visit www.goodfoodandwineshow.co.za/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pBkGWhFfjpk
Source: www.goodfoodandwineshow.co.za/

IN A WORLD OF OVER-PROCESSED PRODUCTS AND INGREDIENTS, SUPREME IS PROUD TO KEEP IT REAL.

Over the years, Supreme Wheat Flour has earned the trust of professional bakers by bringing them top quality, consistent flour that gives them the perfect results they’re looking for, batch after batch.

What few bakers know, is that Supreme Wheat Flour is also unbleached* and additive-free. No chemicals have been used to whiten our flour, and no enzymes or oxidizing agents have been added. Every bag you buy is filled with nothing but pure, Supreme flour.

This is great news for bakers who want to have complete control over the results of their baking, and who want to give their customers nothing but the best.

*Excludes Hi-Ratio Cake Wheat Flour

AS A RESULT OF AN ENTREPRENEURIAL DRIVE BY RCL FOODS MILLING’S SUPREME FLOUR BRAND, TEN INDIVIDUALS HAVE WON THEIR OWN SUPREME FLOUR VETKOEK TROLLEYS AND PRIZES FROM THE JABULANI SCHOOL OF COOKING.

“We are extremely pleased with how successful the promotion was over the past six weeks, and are very encouraged with the response from the community,” says Senior Brand Manager for Supreme Flour and RCL Foods Milling Liezel van Bergen. “These promoters have became our brand ambassadors and have applied everything that they were taught at the beginning of the promotion.”

In conjunction with the Supreme Flour vetkoek promotion, consumers were encouraged to enter a competition where either a Supreme Flour trolley or cooking courses from Jabulani School of Cooking could be won.

The following five people were randomly selected (after being audited) to win the trolleys; Fred Heydenrych, Jerry Manamela, Pantelis, Alfred Lenka Modise and Samson Nhlapo while Tsakani Kamsenza, Pieter Van Der Merwe, Emmanuel Nkoana, Gilbert Mutavhatsinvi and Bianca Mariani drew Jabulani School of Cooking prizes.

Promoters were awarded certificates for successfully completing their training for six weeks, sometimes under difficult circumstances. When speaking to the nine promoters, the overriding sentiment was one of extreme gratitude to a company that is willing to hand over the trolleys and enable them to become self sufficient and to adequately support their families.

Other comments included, Emmah Setshedi: “This is my breakthrough in life”, “My stress levels are lower and Supreme Flour has put a smile on my face”, Emily Jacob: “This is the biggest opportunity to be my own boss” and Christina Mavuso: “I love cooking and baking and am happy when people enjoy my food”.

“All of the promoters were unemployed for a period of time and have now earned the tools required to make a financial success of their future and to successfully enter the bake-for-profit industry,” says Liezel. “As many bigger customers will testify to, we take our commitment to our customers very seriously and ensure that their businesses run smoothly, and in this vein we will be supporting our newest entrepreneurs for a period of time.”

VETKOEK TROLLEY WINNERS:

Fred Heydenrych
Jerry Manamela
Peter Piperidis
Alfred Lenka Modise
Samson Nhlapo

JABULANI SCHOOL OF COOKING VOUCHER WINNERS:

Tsakani Kamsenza
Pieter Van Der Merwe
Emmanuel Nkoana
Gilbert Mutavhatsinvi
Bianca Mariani

According to research by Mintel, bread consumption in France has declined by 10% over the past 10 years; whilst Italy has seen a decrease from 200g to 80g per capita over the same time period. The UK has also seen a decline of 2% year-on-year.

According to Judy Laidlaw, Marketing Manager for Bakery and Grains at Supreme and RCL Foods Milling, there are numerous reasons for this decline.

“Consumers’ fast-paced lifestyles leave them with little time to shop, they have less income due to the effects of the global recession, many are on bread-free diets, there is a decline in breakfast eating, and smaller households which don’t need such large quantities of bread are becoming the norm,” she says.

The end result is that bakeries need to adapt to market conditions and adapt their offerings or they will suffer and perhaps even close as a result.

“Today’s consumers are enjoying on-the-go snacking products, ethnic and exotic breads and home-made quality goods. There has also been a large move towards gluten and wheat free options which bakeries need to add to their shelves,” says Judy.

“Consumers are looking for around the clock options that they can pick up at a time that suits their daily routine. That’s why we’ve seen a boom in in-store bakeries in the United States and even in South Africa,” she adds.

Judy explains that US bakery in-store sales reached an all-time high in 2012, with sales growing 5.6% to $12.8 billion. The number of in-store bakeries grew by 14%, from 24 400 (2007) to 27 900 (2012). “This is phenomenal growth when compared to the package bread segment, which saw less than 1% growth in 2012.”

Some retailers are taking in-store bakeries to the next level by creating a traditional bakery feel within the store, whilst others are ensuring the convenience that consumers need by coming up with all kinds of new ideas – even a cupcake vending machine.

“The concept is simple,” says Senior Brand Manager for Supreme Flour and RCL Foods Milling Liezel van Bergen. “The Supreme Flour Vetkoek trolley promotion was launched at the beginning of November. During the six week period, promoters produce and sample vetkoek made from Supreme cake wheat flour at various Makro stores within Gauteng.

Once the promotion is complete, the vendors become the owners of the trolleys and equipment and begin the initial stage of building their own businesses. In addition, Supreme is encouraging current bake-for-profit entrepreneurs to grow their existing businesses by demonstrating the benefits of Supreme products.”

Businesses that already use Supreme Flour have repeatedly commented on the major advantages and benefits of using it.This includes the consistent quality of the flour, reliable yields, and being able to produce the same amount of vetkoek every time from the same quantity of dough and therefore less wastage.

To gain first hand insight into theamagwinyaorvetkoekmarket, the Supreme Flour marketing team spent time in Soweto and gained some interesting facts from the community. It was established that large quantities of vetkoek are sold in the morning to people on their way to work or school and although it can be made using two types of dough (soft or stiff), consumers prefer the dough to be sweet.

“Taking all the insights and facts into account, the vetkoek trolley promotion and competition was developed and launched. This initiative is also considered a CSI drive, and as such it is important to RCL Foods Milling that we provide people with the skills and expertise necessary to start and operate a successful business independently,” says Liezel.

“Promoters are equipped with all cooking utensils and ingredients to produce vetkoek, as well as the clothing and necessary promotional branding,” says Elliot Sijovu Project Manager of the Vetkoek Initiative. “We selected promoters within the vicinity of the individual Makro stores as they already know the area and their target market, but it also means that they save on transport costs.”

During the selection process, prospective applicants were interviewed and once selected underwent three days of intensive training where fundamentals like stock control, food safety, cleanliness, safety when working with heat and gas, and general etiquette when dealing with customers were dealt with

Nthabiseng Ramokgata, a promoter at Makro Woodmead says, “This trolley is a much better setup than I used in the past as I have been baking for family and friends for a long time, I have also been making and selling meals to people on the way to work.

I could never have afforded a trolley like this one supplied by Supreme Flour, and I’m very grateful for the opportunity to own this vetkoek trolley. With the knowledge that I have gained, I will be able to produce many vetkoek to sell and grow my own business.”

Besides the nine promoters earning their trolleys, Supreme Flour will also be giving away a vetkoek trolley or one of five 8 week baking courses at Jabulani Cooking School in their Amagwinya Entrepreneurship Competition.

Baking is experiencing change at a rapid pace. Sometimes it may be difficult for bakers to maintain a business and simultaneously keep up with the latest trends. As part of its commitment to customers, Supreme Flour is ensuring that they keep abreast and up-to-date with the latest trends and changes.

Baking trends, across the globe, indicate that consumers are looking for something different and more appetising. And they want variety as well.

In the United Kingdom (UK), for example, bagels are enjoying strong growth with an increase in sales of 44% in 2012. Artisan breads is another bread product offering that is enjoying large consumer demand. So much so, in fact, that a predicted 20.3% rise in sales, from 2012 to 2017, has been cited in the United States (US).

“On the back of the popularity of artisan breads, white bread is losing its consumer appeal, especially in Italy where in-store bakeries are offering a host of Italian specialties from Kalmata olive bread to Ciabatta, Focaccia, Panini and Bruschetta,” confirms Judy Laidlaw, Marketing Manager for Bakery and Grains at Supreme and RCL Foods Milling.

Whether consumers feel like eating hot dogs, burgers or sandwiches, it’s always the bread that counts. This is especially the case with a pretzel bun which should be soft, chewy and slightly salty as these flavours add the extra dimension that today’s consumers are looking for.

“Mintel reports that the Pretzel Bun is again on the rise with 160 new pretzel products on the US market in 2012, compared to only 60 in 2009. According to Datassential research, pretzel bread has become the fastest-growing sandwich bread, advancing 36% on sandwich menus from 2011 to 2012,” says Judy.

Other trendy items are Cronuts, a hybrid of doughnuts and croissants, which are enjoying tremendous success in New York and the latest in up-market French Patisserie – savoury pastries. Gourmet doughnuts are trending in the US where they offer unusual and exciting flavour profiles like green tea, grapefruit, Campari and even chilli mango.

Even the traditional French baguette is getting a twist, with La Mie Caline – one of France’s top franchises with 200 stores – experimenting with it.

“Bakeries are not only offering their consumers the new and exciting, they are also reinventing the classics and switching from sweet to savoury to keep their customers coming back for more,” says Judy.

“This is especially important during tough economic times as whilst many consumers can no longer afford to go out for a meal, they can afford to treat themselves with new, interesting and tasty breads,” she adds.

SUPREME FLOUR is proud to announce that we have entered into a partnership with JABULANI SCHOOL OF COOKING- a chef’s school in Mondeor, predominantly attended by previously disadvantaged Soweto residents. We have branded the school with appealing, new signage showing our endorsement of the baking training where only Supreme Flour is used.

Jabulani also uses Supreme Flour exclusively in their bake-for-profit sector that regularly generates funds for the school. Supreme is proud to donate a custom-made vetkoek trolley to be used by students over the weekends. Proceeds from the vetkoek sales will financially assist the institution.

In addition, we have purchased several 8-week Baking Courses from the school. These will be used as prizes for our Supreme Flour Vetkoek promotions scheduled for the wholesale trade sector.