The major factors which adversely influence the quality of bread are as follows:

  • Inferior quality and inadequate quantity of gluten in the flour.
  • Poor or excessive diastatic activity.
  • Disproportionate quantity of raw material.
  • Inferior quality of raw material specially yeast
  • Incorrect time and temperature of fermentation
  • Incorrect methods of manipulation of dough i.e. knock back, dividing and moulding.
  • Improver proofing condition i.e. time, temperature and humidity.
  • Improper baking conditions i.e. time temperature and humidity.
  • Inadequate cooling of bread before packing
  • Improper storage conditions
  • A general lack of understanding of principles of hygiene on the part of baker.

Other factors are:

  1. EXCESSIVE VOLUME: REASONS
  • Over fermentation of dough
  • Lack of temperature in the oven
  • Too slack a dough
  • Lack of salt in the formula
  • Excessive quantity of yeast
  • Excessive proofing
  • Excessive quantity of dough for the size of mould
  • Loose moulding

 

  1. CRUST COLOR:
  • Excessive fermentation time
  • Lack of salt
  • Too slack a dough
  • Excessive yeast
  • Too high temperature
  • Lack of sugar in formula
  • Use of excessive dusting of flour

TOO DARK COLOR:

  • Excessive sugar
  • Young dough (under fermentation)
  • Too high oven temperature
  • Higjh milk/salt
  • Lack of humidity in the oven

 

  1. LACK OF BREAK SHRED:
  • Over fermentation
  • Under matured dough
  • Over proofing
  • Too high temperature in oven
  • Very slack dough

 

  1. HOLES AND TUNNELS IN BREAD:
  • Too weak flour
  • Too strong flour with high yeast content
  • Mixing of ingredients
  • Oven sole is too hot
  • Knocking back is not done thoroughly
  • Excessive dusting of flour.
  1. CORES AND SEAMS:

The hard spots are known as “cores” and the dense layers are known as “seams”

  • Uneven mixing of dough
  • Incorporation of bits of dough
  • Skinning of dough during bulk fermentation
  • Weight of dough more than mould
  • Too hot or too cold bread moulds
  • Careless handling of fully expended bread while loading the oven.

 

  1. CONDENSATION MARKS:
  • Dark color patches are known as condensation marks because the bread is not allowed to cool properly before packing

 

  1. RAPID DRYING OF BREAD: (STALING)
  • Baking in too cool oven
  • Over fermentation
  • Too tight dough
  • Imbalance in quantity of ingredients
  • Excessive use of mineral (improvers)

 

  1. OVER MOIST OR STICKY CRUMB:
  • Excessive sugar
  • Over proofing
  • Under proofing
  1. CLOSE CRUMB:
  • Over use of potassium bromate
  • Use of hard water
  • Young dough
  • Under proofing etc.

 

  1. CRUMBLINESS OF CRUMB: (ELASTCITY OF BREAD)
  • Too slack dough
  • Too tight dough
  • Excessive use of fat
  • Low salt content
  • Under mixed dough
  • Over proofing
  • Excessive of mineral improvers
  • Poor quality of flour
  • Under baked dough

BREAD DISEASES:

  • ROPE: a spoiling bacterial growth in bread experienced when the dough becomes infected with bacterial spores. The bacteria responsible for causing “rope” is “Bacillus mesentericus vulgates”. It is soil borne bacteria.
  • MOLD: spores enter through the cracks on the surface of the bread and spoils the bread.