bake - November 2019 - 18

Don Trouba

The Annex by

ARDENT MILLS
Consumers are demanding more meaningful

Ardent Mills understands that innovation

connections to their foods. This is a big

can be challenging, "and we're proud of the

trend that manifests in many ways, says Don

fact that from the facilities to the people,

Trouba, senior director, Go-to-Market, The

we have what it takes to enable new ideas

Annex by Ardent Mills. For example, people

and help bring them to life," Trouba says.

are seeking highly individualized approaches

"Whether it's at our ﬂagship Ardent Mills

to their diets and are making food choices

Innovation Center (AMIC) at our headquar-

based on personal or planetary health -

ters in Denver, or our commercial artisan

or both. At the same time, consumers are

bakery - Innovative Bakery Resources

connecting to food not only by learning

(IBR) - in Portland, Oregon, our R&D and

about its history, growing and production,

technical baking teams are constantly

but also by engaging with farmers and

developing new ideas and concepts as

producers through technology.

well as supporting customers. We're proud
to have food scientists, technical bakers

Finally, Trouba adds, a renaissance of tradi-

and a certiﬁed master baker on staff, all

tional ingredients and cooking methods is

helping to drive innovation for us and our

beginning to surface, even though we live in

customers."

FAST FACTS

a world focused on convenience. "When it

The Annex by Ardent Mills
is a business unit of Ardent
Mills that is cultivating the
future of specialty grains and
plant-based ingredients. It's
supported by a dedicated team
committed to exploring what's
next in whole grains, pulses,
mixes, custom multigrain
blends and finished breads. Its
broad portfolio includes ancient
and heirloom grains, organic
grains and flours, sprouted
wheat and chickpeas.

comes to innovation for retail bakeries, the

Trouba points out that it starts with readily

ﬁrst place we like to start is with our broad

available innovative ingredients, including

portfolio," he says. "With more than 150

customizable grain and seed blends, as well

years of milling legacy, we offer a complete

as savory baking mixes. These are the work-

array of traditional bakery ﬂours for any

horses of differentiated foods in the retail

formula that a retail baker might use. But

bakery space. From there Ardent Mills offers

that's just the start. We also offer innova-

a number of formulas and starter recipes

tive ingredients that can deliver whole grain

to help customers get their ideas off the

nutrition with little or no impact on ﬂavor

ground.

18 < NOV 2019 | bakemag.com

ingredients, ancient and heirloom grains,

For businesses that need pilot or trial

and even pulses like chickpea ﬂour to boost

capability, the IBR team provides a bridge

plant-based protein.

between lab ideas and commercial reality.
Once a product has been tweaked to perfec-

"One of the parts of our portfolio many

tion in the lab, the IBR team tackles the

people don't know about, however, are our

challenge of duplicating it in large-scale,

savory baking mixes and our multigrain and

real-world production facilities. "The milling

seed blends," Trouba adds. "Together, ingre-

and baking industries will continue to deliver

dients like these can jumpstart innovation for

more customized solutions to clients," Trouba

retail bakers by giving them a ready-to-use

says. "Ingredient suppliers and product

mix for a new application, or by taking the

developers will work together more closely

complexity out of managing multiple SKUs

and collaboratively as customer tastes and

in the case of multigrain and seed baked

demands continue to require greater levels of

goods."

customization."

ARDENT MILLS

Established in 2013 and located
in Tualatin, Oregon, in a 92,000
square-foot facility, Innovative
Bakery Resources produces inhouse customized formulations
to meet customer needs.

and functionality as well as gluten-free
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