Fresh bread: new italian law coming soon

It has recently been announced that Italy has notified the European Commission of a draft law introducing new rules for the production and sale of bread. The aim is to protect artisan bakers from competition with large industries. After the Commission's opinion, the draft law will be presented to Parliament for approval, which is expected to take place by the end of the year.

The main innovation of the new text on the "Production and Sale of Bread and Bakery Products" is the redefinition of what is meant by "fresh bread": the new regulation, which will replace Decree 131/2018, establishes in Article 2 stricter criteria for the definition of "fresh bread", reserving this designation only for products obtained through a continuous production process, without freezing or deep-freezing interruptions. However, the use of "dough retarder" is allowed to slow down the leavening process, provided that no more than 72 hours elapse from the start of processing to the baking of the bread.

Another important innovation, aimed at protecting artisan bakers and preventing discount stores or supermarket chains from passing off pre-cooked or previously frozen bread as fresh, is the strict prohibition of expressions such as "freshly baked", "hot bread", or other similar terms that could mislead the final consumer!

Other noteworthy points include:

• Moisture: removal of size restrictions
• Ash content: removal of reference values
• Breadsticks: sale in bulk allowed only in bakeries
• Origin labeling: if production phases (mixing, leavening, partial baking, or baking) take place in other EU or non-EU countries, it must be clearly indicated on the label
• Pre-cooked bread: it will be mandatory to specify if the bread has been partially baked elsewhere before sale, thus avoiding possible misunderstandings for consumers

Finally, Article 14 of the new regulation establishes the "Bread Festival" to celebrate this important food in Italian culture and tradition. The festival would be held every year on the first Sunday of May!

We will return to this topic as more information becomes available.