The baking industry outlook remains strong despite shifting concerns around supply chain, input costs and workforce. That’s the key finding of the BEMA Intel 2020-21 Culminating Report, released at the BEMA Convention 2021, held June 22-26.
With a year of BEMA Intel now fully reported, Marjorie Hellmer, President of Cypress Research, walked the association’s members through what BEMA Intel has to offer each quarter as well as how the industry indicators changed over the 12-month period from 2020 to 2021.
Cypress Research conducts the BEMA Member Pulse Survey every quarter and compiles the data,
“In this age of technology, we have access to an ocean of data, but that can cause confusion when you’re trying to parse out the data,” Ms. Hellmer said, explaining the challenge BEMA Intel was designed to address. “Along with this ocean of data comes a real struggle for industry professionals to discern the value of the data that you’re viewing.”
Ms. Hellmer was joined onstage by Tim Cook, chief executive officer, Shick Esteve, and first Vice Chair of BEMA; Jason Ward, President of AMF Bakery Systems and BEMA Board Member; and Josh Sosland, President of Sosland Publishing Co.
Mr. Cook expressed how important BEMA Intel has been in providing a broader picture of the industry as a whole and how shifts in the economic environment are playing out on a quarterly basis.
“It gives us a broader perspective because my specific business may be doing well, but that might not be true of the industry as a whole,” he noted. “Following this data every quarter through 2020 and Q1 of 2021 confirmed that we had come out of the worst, and things were continuing to get better.”
The review of BEMA Intel data also shows how the industry responded to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in outlook, investment and how the supply chain challenges started to play out in input costs and industry concerns.
In Q2 of 2020, for instance,only 13% of equipment manufacturers reported that their quarterly bookings were up and 45% reported that bookings were down. In Q1 of 2021, however, 44% of equipment manufacturers reported that bookings were up and only 7% reported bookings were down.
Moreover, this increase in bookings is reflected in equipment manufacturers’ outlook of the industry. In Q2 of 2020, only 76% of equipment manufacturers had a positive outlook for the next six months, but at the end of 2021’s first quarter, that number surged to 95% of respondents
The annual report went a step further, asking bakery producers their industry outlook, which more than 90% reported a very positive or somewhat positive outlook.
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Media contact
Kiran Grewal
Editor, International Bakery
Tel: +44 (0) 1622 823 922
Email: editor@in-bakery.com
