Health & Wellbeing Category: 2022 Winner Rebel Bakehouse - Gluten Free Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap
Rebel Bakehouse, winner of the Health & Wellbeing category was awarded the title in 2022 for their Gluten Free Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap.
Based in the Wairarapa, Rebel Bakehouse is known for its passion and innovation for the products their ‘rebellious’ bakers create.
Always wanting to excite and delight their customers with new products, Rebel Bakehouse combined the needs of their customers with an identified gap in the market which helped craft their new product: Gluten Free Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap.
Customers wanted a wrap that was not only delicious but soft, pliable and didn’t crack under pressure. To achieve this, the dedicated bakery created its very own gluten-free starter using a wild Wairarapa yeast, a living bacteria which needs feeding once a day, 365 days a year!
It’s no surprise that Rebel Bakehouse’s success, excellence and innovation has led to an 82 per cent share of the booming gluten-free wrap market.
“Being involved in the NZ Food Awards has so many positives! From a marketing angle the publicity from being a winner across so many media platforms is great for Rebel Bakehouse brand exposure, creating new news to grab people’s attention. From a trade angle, as in the retail chains, it gives our brand additional credibility around the quality and overarching marketing strategy of our products. In addition to all that, it’s fantastic for the Rebel Bakehouse team, giving everyone that’s worked so hard to bring new products and the brand to life a real boost in morale. All in all – being involved in the awards is loaded with benefits for both our brand and our people.”
Entry (extracts):
1. Product Name
Gluten Free Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap
2. Product Description
At Rebel Bakehouse, we don’t just bake; we create. Our master bakers refuse to compromise on taste, convenience or nutrition, crafting our wraps and bagels in the Wairarapa, challenging the norm so Kiwis can pack more goodness into their day.
Our Gluten Free Sourdough and Super Seeds Wraps are packed with nutritious ingredients and feature a distinctive sourdough flavour, made using our very own gluten free sourdough ferment. As well as being delicious, they’re soft, pliable, and don’t crack under pressure.
Rebel Bakehouse has an 82% share of the booming gluten-free wrap market. With consumers always keen to get their hands on new products they can trust and enjoy without compromising on taste, we saw an opportunity for a super seeds wrap, providing choice and goodness within the constraints of their diet.
Made from ingredients including rice flour, soy flour and pea protein, the wraps are tested, approved and certified Gluten Free by Coeliac New Zealand with the Crossed Grain Logo
Our gluten-free wraps are vegan friendly and egg and dairy free (but do contain soy).
Innovation
3. Where did the idea for this product come from?
Given our commanding market share of the gluten-free wrap market, we’re always looking for new products to delight and surprise our loyal gluten free customers.
When researching the market and analysing scan data it became obvious there was a market gap for a sourdough, seeded wrap.
To develop our new wraps, our rebellious bakers created Rebel’s very own gluten-free starter, made using a wild Wairarapa yeast – and then incorporated super seeds into the wrap to deliver additional nutritional benefits, functional and tasty.
4. How did you determine the product originality?
Before settling on the final recipe for our Gluten Free Sourdough and Super Seeds Wrap, we carefully assessed the market and found that while there were plenty gluten free white and spinach wraps on the shelves, there were no gluten free sourdough seeded options.
Sourdough is known for its good gut bacteria but to boost the nutritional benefits, we added super seeds which carry fatty acids like omega 3 & 6, along with additional fibre & protein.
5. Did you consider any new technology to your company in the development of this product?
Our Gluten Free Sourdough and Super Seeds Wrap are made on the same production line as our other gluten free wraps, and our bakers use the same baking techniques. What is different about these wraps is that we have a dedicated area to ferment our sourdough gluten free starter. It is a living bacteria which we feed once a day, 365 days a year.
6. What were some of the challenges in developing your product and how did you overcome them?
Rebel’s Gluten Free Wraps range is made very differently from other gluten free wraps available.
Traditionally – due to the weaker structure of gluten free flours- bakers will roll out a sheet of dough and cut the wraps with dies. Wheat-based flour wraps are made using a hot press, which is a technique we use at Rebel.
We have been able to do this by finding the right combination of flours, proteins, gums, and starches to make a dough that can withstand the pressure of the hot press – producing a softer, fluffier, and more pliable product that’s great to wrap and great to eat.
7. In your food technologist’s words, what was the proudest moment in the product’s journey?
Our proudest moment has to be developing a gluten free recipe that’s full of nutritional grains and seeds. Not only do our gluten free wraps need to meet strict dietary needs, we still want them to roll, be folded and do all the things a wrap should do. This one ticks all the boxes – and we’ve loved hearing the amazing feedback from NZ’s gluten-free community.
Sustainability
8. Describe how environmental outcomes have been maximised across the entire life cycle of the product and your company processed for achieving these outcomes?
Rebel Bakehouse (owned by Breadcraft) incorporates sustainable business practice to maximise the positive and minimise the negative impacts on both the environment and social community wherever possible.
• Waste bread goes back into production to make croutons or is sent to local farmers for feed.
• Production staff uniforms and oven mitts are reused, laundered daily.
• All cardboard and paper is recycled.
• Efforts are made to run the factory efficiently (reduce water, chemical, energy, gas) such as using auto-dosing for all chemicals to limit wastage.
• We belong to the Packaging Forum's Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme, enabling the recycling of plastic film at bins in supermarkets. https://www.recycling.kiwi.nz/
• Our forward strategy includes championing landfill reduction, recycling and reuse and further measures to reduce our carbon footprint and mitigate climate change.
9. Provide a specific example of environmental sustainability initiatives related to the product you have entered.
• We belong to the Packaging Forum's Soft Plastic Recycling Scheme, enabling the recycling of plastic film at bins in supermarkets. https://www.recycling.kiwi.nz/
• Waste bread goes back into production to make croutons or is sent to local farmers for feed.
10. Describe how your company consciously addresses social sustainability across the entire life cycle of its products and your company process for achieving these outcomes.
We consider our entire team to be part of the Rebel Bakehouse and Breadcraft family.
We are proud to be an accredited Living Wage employer and have structured the business to enable staff to grow - progress throughout the business and have a strong sense of achievement and contribution. We also celebrate the work of our team every year with annual achievement awards
Breadcraft Wairarapa is celebrating its 80-year anniversary this year and has always been proud to be an active member of the community it was founded in – Masterton, Wairarapa. We support the community with sponsorship: WTA Sports Awards, Kids triathlon, Aratoi School Art, Lifelight, Wai Bush, Life Education Trust, MIS Golf Tournament and product donations.
Excellence
11. Briefly outline your product process.
Rebel Bakehouse’s Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap is our first gluten-free product to be made with using our very own gluten free starter. The starter – which is at the heart of our wrap – was created in October 2020.
Building on Rebel’s success with the gluten free consumer market, we analysed data and presented our idea to key account managers to gauge likely sales and success.
When we were confident the product would meet consumer demand and sell well, our bakers then spent months in our test kitchen to find the right mix of ingredients to produce a wrap that’s softer, fluffier and more pliable than other gluten free wraps on the market. Our bakers then added chia and red quinoa (known for its super food qualities) to boost nutritional function, taste and texture
Once perfected, the new wraps were made in our specially commissioned gluten-free bakery using the hot press baking method outlined above.
Our packaging design was also an important part of the process – and is designed to encourage purchase, maximise brand and shelf impact, flavour differentiation, health benefits, meal inspiration (imagery) and to fit with Rebel bagel packaging designs.
A new website, packed with inspiring wrap recipes, social media, media/PR, sampling and in-store display stands all ties into an integrated, high impact marketing campaign to grow not only Rebel wraps, but also the category as a whole.
12. How did you determine the product’s likely success in the market?
Since launching our gluten-free range and expanding on it in 2021 we’ve been able to gather a substantial amount of data about what gluten free consumers want. Reviewing market sales data also helped us spot the trend for functional foods.
We took these insights to create our Gluten Free Sourdough & Super Seeds Wrap, presenting the concept to key account buyers to gather feedback, which played an important part in determining distribution and sales forecasts.
Reviewing market sales data also helped us spot the trend for functional foods.
Health & Wellbeing
13. Nutritional Information Panel (Nutrients per l00gm)
Tortilla Premix [Modified Tapioca Starch (1442), Starch (Tapioca, Potato), Soy Protein Concentrate, Rice Flour, Vegetable Gums (464, 466, 415 (Soy)), Soy Flour, Dextrose, Emulsifier (471), Mineral Salt (170), Canola Oil, Acidity Regulator (263), Enzyme, Antioxidants (307, 304, 330), Monopropylene Glycol], Water, Canola Oil, Fermented Rice Flour (3.5%), Glutinous Rice Flour, Baking Powder [Raising Agents (501, 450), Free Flow Agent (170, 551, 470), Maize Starch], Seeds (2%) (Chia, Red Quinoa, Poppy), Cultured Rice Flour, White Vinegar, Pea Protein, Acidity Regulator (297), Vegetable Gum (412), Psyllium Fibre, Preservative (282).
Our gluten free wraps are vegan friendly and egg and dairy free but do contain soy.
14. Health: Ingredient list %
SERVINGS PER PACK: 4 SERVING SIZE: 80g (1 WRAP)
AVERAGE QUANTITY PER SERVING % DAILY INTAKE PER SERVING AVERAGE QUANTITY PER 100g
ENERGY 851kJ 9.8% 1064kJ
PROTEIN 1.6g 3.2% 2.0g
- GLUTEN NOT DETECTED
FAT, TOTAL 4.9g 7.0% 6.1g
- SATURATED 0.3g 1.3% 0.4g
CARBOHYDRATE 39.8g 12.8% 49.7g
- SUGARS 3.4g 3.7% 4.2g
DIETARY FIBRE 3.6g 12.0% 4.5g
SODIUM 386mg 16.8% 483mg
QUANTITIES STATED ABOVE ARE AVERAGES ONLY
*PERCENTAGE DAILY INTAKES ARE BASED ON AN AVERAGE ADULT DIET OF 8700KJ. YOUR DAILY INTAKES MAY BE HIGHER OR LOWER DEPENDING ON YOUR ENERGY NEEDS
15. Target market for this product
Consumers of all ages (including children) and those shopping for them looking for a gluten free wrap option that’s soft and pliable, versatile, tastes great and is packed full of nutritious ingredients. They search out products that offer the nutrition profile they’re after but still deliver on great taste. They or those they shop for may be on a coeliac diet or may just choose a gluten free lifestyle. They are likely to use wraps as ‘wraps’ but also as an alternative for pastry, pizza bases, burger buns and more.
16. Describe how this product meets the nutritional guidelines for this target market
Rebel Sourdough & Super Seeds wraps are gluten free, they provide 9.8% of energy daily intake, 851kJ per 80g serving (1064kJ per 100g). They provide 12% of fibre daily intake and are loaded with seeds including Chia, Red Quinoa, Poppy and as they’re made with our special sourdough ferment they are soft and pliable and have a distinctive sourdough flavour, nutritious and tasty - ideal for those in the target market.
Made with rice flour, soy flour and pea protein, these wraps are tested, approved and certified Gluten Free by Coeliac New Zealand with the Crossed Grain Logo. They have met strict CODEX and US FDA criteria as well as the Food Standard Australia and New Zealand criteria of ‘no detectable gluten’ which is currently measured to less than 3ppm.
