Humidity Control in Bakeries: Why It Matters for Better Bread Quality
Producing high-quality bread is about much more than using the right ingredients. Throughout mixing, proofing, cooling and storage, humidity has a direct impact on dough handling, crust quality, shelf life and food safety. Even small fluctuations in humidity can lead to inconsistent products, increased waste and higher production costs. In this article, you’ll discover why humidity control is essential in modern bakeries and how Dry Fog humidification helps create consistent baking conditions.
4 steps in the baking process where humidity control is important:
1: Dough consistency:
Humidity affects the moisture content of the dough during the baking process. If the humidity level is too high, the dough can become sticky and difficult to handle. On the other hand, low humidity can cause the dough to dry out, resulting in poor texture and flavor. Controlling humidity ensures consistent dough consistency, leading to better quality baked goods.
2:Yeast fermentation:
Yeast plays a vital role in the baking process as it helps the dough rise and develop flavor. It is highly sensitive to changes in humidity. High humidity can cause excessive yeast activity, resulting in over-fermentation and a gummy texture. Conversely, low humidity can slow down yeast activity, leading to under-fermentation and dense products. Proper humidity control ensures optimal yeast fermentation, contributing to light and airy baked goods.
3: Crust formation:
Humidity affects crust development during baking. Higher humidity levels in the oven can delay crust formation, resulting in pale and soft crusts. On the other hand, low humidity can lead to excessive crust formation, creating a thick and overly crispy exterior. By controlling humidity levels, bakers can achieve the desired texture, color, and crispness of the crust.
4: Shelf life and texture:
Humidity control also influences the shelf life and texture of baked goods. In a high-humidity environment, products like bread and pastries can quickly become stale and lose their desirable texture. On the contrary, low humidity can cause products to dry out and become hard. Maintaining appropriate humidity levels helps preserve freshness and extend the shelf life of baked goods.
What is the ideal humidity in a bakery?
Solution: Humidity control with Dry Fog
Control your humidity levels accurately with AKIMist®. An energy-efficient and compact solution. It is both available in a wall-hanging and a portable model and easy to install. AKIMist® is known for being non-wetting due to its tiny droplet size around 7.5 µm. Thanks to the small size of the Dry Fog humidifier AKIMist® (~5 inch), it can easily fit in a tight room or under a low ceiling. AKIMist® can either be mounted to the wall or ceiling with our easy installation kits.
Highlights
- Consistent humidity
- Non-wetting dry fog
- Compact installation
- Lower energy costs
- Adjustable spray angles
- Dust suppression
Advantages of AKIMist® Dry Fog humidification for bread baking
By adding humidity control, the rising process of the dough can better be controlled.
Humidity control leads to a longer shelf life as they will not dry out or lose their texture as fast.
Humidity control ensures to keep the dough moist so that it does not dry out or become sticky.
Due to its tiny droplet size around 7.5 µm, the droplets will bounce back and evaporate without bursting.
AKIMist® uses 80% less energy than conventional humidification equipment which makes it very cost-efficient.
AKIMist® is extremely compact (5 inch) and easily fits into a small room.
AKIMist® puts you in full control of the humidity level in your growing room and can be automated with a sensor.
When used with purified water, AKIMist® requires very little maintenance
AKIMist® has been developed and produced in-house in Japan which ensures the highest standards in quality and reliability.
catalog
Download our AKIMist® catalog to learn more about the technology behind Dry Fog
Dust suppression during the baking process
Dust suppression is an often-overlooked aspect of bakery operations, but it has significant benefits for food safety, worker health, equipment reliability, and plant safety. Flour dust is generated during all steps of the baking process, and if not controlled, it can create operational and safety challenges from explosion risk to jeopardizing worker’s health.
Disinfection of cooling room and storage
- The temperature will rise in the room when fresh-baked bread is left there
- Avoid mold growth during cooling and storage.
- By spraying alcohol through spray nozzles installed in the cooling duct, the room is disinfected and mold is avoided.
- The BIMK series is a hollow cone pneumatic spray nozzle.
- It produces fine atomization with a mean droplet diameter of 100 µm or less.
Looking for a similar solution for your bakery?
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