About 30% to 40% of the United States food supply is wasted, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s Economic Research Service, which points to the importance of ensuring that packaged foods are not lost to spoilage sooner than necessary. Bakers looking to extend the shelf life of sweet baked goods have tools they can use, but there are many considerations that must be weighed in the process.

“Extending the shelf life of sweet baked goods depends on several factors, including formulation, processing conditions, retaining the softness, moisture and resilience over time, and preventing mold growth,” said Sherrill Cropper, new product development lab manager, Lesaffre. “The advantage is that sweet baked goods do contain higher levels of sugar, which does help with the texture and shelf life. However, depending on how long the product needs to remain ‘fresh’ or meet a specific shelf life target, this alone may not be sufficient.”

To maximize quality, extended shelf life (ESL) should be customized for every type of sweet baked good.

“General manufacturing practices and standard operating procedures are critical in achieving consistent quality across any sweet baked good,” said Cam Suárez Bitár, director of marketing and public relations, Bellarise. “Assuming that any extended shelf life system suits any sweet baked good application would be a big mistake, since extending the shelf life of sweet baked goods is nuanced and requires finely tuned custom ESL solutions that fit a bakery’s recipe, process and goals.”

High sugar content creates an environment of low water activity, inhibiting mold and bacteria growth, which naturally helps extend shelf life by preventing spoilage. Sugar acts as a humectant, which helps baked goods retain their moisture.

“Overall, sugar content enhances the texture, flavor and browning of baked goods, creating a tender crumb, crisp crust, and maintaining softness and freshness over time,” said Luc Casavant, director, baking applications, Lallemand Baking. “However, it’s important to balance sugar content carefully, as too much sugar can lead to excessive moisture retention, making the product too moist or sticky, and potentially leading to other quality issues.”

Higher sugar content can have other benefits, said Joe Gontowski, research and development manager, BreadPartners Inc.

“The high sugar level interferes with gluten development, resulting in a tender and soft crumb structure,” he said. “This can make the baked goods more enjoyable to eat and potentially last longer without becoming stale.”

Balancing the moisture in baked goods is important, as too much can result in microbial growth but not enough leads to dry, stale products.

“Shelf life has two meanings: days to mold and soft texture, freshness and good flavor that is not getting rancid from fats,” said Jerry Savino, technical services manager, bakery, Kemin Food Technologies. “Last is the change in consumer preference of everyone’s hometown bakery that may not use any preservatives but are expected to be eaten or enjoyed that day or within a couple of days versus the synthetic or natural preservatives to extend shelf life of products at grocery stores or retailers.”

Ben Reusser, Innovation Center manager, Cain Foods, pointed out that shelf life for sweet goods is much different than bread or buns.

 “Sweet doughs like Danish, brioche and croissants are both high in sugar and fat,” he said. “They can also be iced or glazed, which adds another dimension to the product. The high sugar and fat do help improve shelf life but not extended shelf life. The high sugar content inhibits yeast but also can affect softening enzymes like you would use in breads and buns.”

Keeping cookies soft over extended periods of time is difficult because they are low-moisture products, and battered sweet goods pose challenges, Reusser added.

“Batters like cakes, cake donuts and muffins are high-pH products due to their chemical leavening, which makes mold inhibitors like calcium propionate less effective,” he said. “Their high sugar and short processing times make it difficult to get the most out of softening enzymes. The high fat content also adds the possibility of oxidative rancidity over time.” 

While freezing baked goods extends their freshness, the freezer can create problems with texture and volume. Bakers must plan for that in formulations.

“Some sweet goods undergo freezing as part of the production process and then the solutions for maintaining or extending the shelf life must be durable enough to withstand that process,” Suárez Bitár said. “Finding the best solution for meeting all the criteria for sweet baked good applications can vary based on the desired length of shelf life a bakery is trying to achieve.”

Sugar adds to desirable texture and mouthfeel of products, which increases perceived sweetness, Cropper said.

“This can help play a big part in what makes a product desirable for a longer shelf life,” she explained. “The additional sugar could potentially mask some of the effects of starch retrogradation, the main proponent in causing staling.”

Although sugar can aid in extending shelf life, it can have deleterious effects.

“Sugar can negatively impact product quality when it crystallizes, creating off textures and appearances,” said Ashley Beech, product development manager, bakery, Corbion.

This article is an excerpt from the February 2025 issue of Baking & Snack. To read the entire feature on Extended Shelf Life, click here.