One clear message from shopper behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic era is the "essential" nature of baked goods. In a crisis, the industry provides sustenance, nutrition, and yes, comfort.

Tortillas, always one of the most versatile breads, had extra mileage to accomplish this past year: consumers wanted better-for-you options for their tacos, flautas, and fajitas. They also wanted these to be easily accessible at their local grocery stores so that they could cook at home during the pandemic.

Conventional wisdom holds that COVID-19 had consumers searching for one thing above all others in 2020, and we're not talking toilet paper.

The ongoing pandemic has certainly shifted consumer attitudes and behaviors when it come to foods and the foods they choose. Consumers are looking to connect with food and are gravitating to more familiar comfort foods and indulgent items.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers have been staying home more often, and searching for familiar snacks. Cookies have helped fill that void, and top brands have taken note of what is trending.

State of the Industry analysis of the buns and rolls category, including hamburger buns, hot dog buns, dinner rolls, and more.

After a year that strained the limits of everything, including the descriptive power of adjectives like "unprecedented," "challenging" and "disruptive", something resembling "normal" (another term laid low by 2020's events) seems finally to be stumbling back to life.

Bakery snacks and snack cakes will always be popular, both for their portability as an on-the-go treat and for feeling like a "small indulgence." Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers are still gobbling up these tasty treats, and if they're pre-portioned, that's a plus too.

Since the beginning of 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began its destructive spread across the earth, the baking industry has seen highs and lows unlike any other time in history. This unprecedented challenge has reshaped our world, and much of the industry is emerging stronger than ever.

The 1859 Charles Dickens classic historical novel "A Tale of Two Cities" begins with a statement of startling extremes, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…"