There is some routine data collection and

analysis for production and business management purposes (e.g., yield from a
given set of raw materials), or for legislative reasons (e.g., baking losses to
determine point-of-sale weight or product moisture content), but the collection
and integration of data on-line for the optimisation of bakery of bakery
processes and products remains meagre (Cauvain, 2015). The challenge lies as
much with knowing what to measure and what data to collect, as it does with
the analysis. In such contexts, the emphasis on delivering the appropriate
product quality will inevitably on combining a methodical approach with
relevant knowledge.
There is no magic to problem solving. It is normally achieved through
critical observation, structured thought processes and access to suitable
sources of information. In this chapter, I offer a guide to some of the methods
that might be employed when trying to solve bakery-related problems.
In doing so, as noted above, we must recognise that baking is a complex
mixture of ingredient and process interactions, so that the solutions to our
problems may not always be instant in nature and because ingredients and
processes change, new solutions are always being discovered. The complex
interactions which underpin baking dictate that there are seldom unique
solutions to individual problems. In the majority of cases, individual quality
defects are overcome by changing a number of ingredient and process
factors some of which will be apparently unrelated though careful study will
often reveal that relationships do exist even where they are masked by more
prominent effects.
It would also be appropriate at this stage to deal with the somewhat
amorphous term �quality�. Ultimately, the decision of what is the �right�
product quality lies with the consumer, what is acceptable or �good� for one
consumer may be unacceptable or �bad� for another. For the baker perhaps
the best basis for deciding what the right product quality is depends on
getting repeat product sales. In many of the questions and answers related
to bakery production which follow, there is an implicit understanding that a
particular quality defect is delivering unacceptable (bad) final product
quality. In providing potential solutions to particular problem, it is recognised
that the choice of a particular solution will depend on many factors,
including cost and practicality of application. The answers given should
be seen as a guide as to possible solutions and so are often given with a
degree of flexibility as to application.