“Some nutritionists and dietitians advise people not to eat bread while some others advise them to eat three, two slices or one slice. There is too much disinformation that makes people hesitant on what to eat. As Undano, we advise people to eat bread in an understanding of ‘less is more.’ I don’t think that bread will cause harm to the people if they consume it restrainedly.”

Mehmet UMUR - Undano - Chairman of the Board

Regardless of fierce discussion over bread consumption in Turkey, prominent players of this sector present new kinds of bread one after another to the market. After long research and development process, Undano joined the bread brands that supply bread, which is made of genetically unmodified natural flour that is good for people’s health. Mehmet Umur, Chairman of the Board Undano, told that Turkish people will be at peace with bread with einkorn (siyez) bread against those who recommend not consuming bread, and bread will have its respectful place in people’s diet.

Speaking to BBM Magazine, Mehmet Umur said the company takes firm steps forward. “We produce our bread with years of experience and meticulous care with our first day’s care,” Umur said. The magazine sat down with Mehmet Umur to talk about the problems of the sector, bread waste, and future investment.

Mr. Umar, could you tell us about your company and works? The company was founded in 1947. We have a factory engaged in industrial production on an area of 25 thousand square meters at Çerkez Organized Industrial Site. At this facility, we make high-capacity bread production. This facility is one of the highest capacity factories in Turkey that produce packaged bread production. Under Undano brand, we produce toast bread, sandwich bread, whole wheat bread and hamburger bread. At Çerkezköy Facility, we produce 25 types of packaged bread. At Yenibosna Facility, we produce bread for the service sector, hospitals, and catering firms. Again, at Bakırköy Facility, which has been operational since the foundation of the company, we both produce and sell bread to the end consumers.

Mr. Umar, you are from Kastamonu. What kind of works are you doing regarding your hometown? The research and development team, under the supervision of food senior engineer, developed sourdough einkorn bread. We produce bread out of einkorn wheat from Kastamonu region that stayed genetically unmodified for 10 thousand years. This wheat with 14 chromosomes is as valuable as gold. We aimed to contribute to farmers from Kastamonu that cultivated einkorn wheat known as the ancestor of wheat and also aimed to add value to our brand. We have been working so that Turkish people became aware of this value and deliver this bread all over Turkey.

How did people react to the einkorn bread? Those who taste cannot give it up. We made the launch of our bread in the fair. Additionally, we decided to sell bread with e-trade. The first data are very nice and there is a great demand. The demand has surpassed our expectation. We have a substantial market share. We want Turkish people to taste this value of Kastamonu through e-trade. On order, we cook tailor-made bread within 72 hours and deliver this order anywhere in Turkey. This bread can last up to 10 days. Our food engineer continues to check every step of the production. We apply all the quality certifications we have received at all production stages.

50-GRAM-BREAD CAN PREVENT WASTE Mr. Umar, you are also the President of the Milled Cereal Products and Bakery Products’ Committee at the Istanbul Chamber of Industry. What can you say about waste and consumption of bread in Turkey? How can this waste be prevented? Some nutritionists and dietitians advise people not to eat bread while some others advise them to eat three slices or two slices or one slice. There is too much disinformation that makes people hesitant on what to eat. As Undano, we advise people to eat bread in an understanding of ‘less is more.’ So far, I have not seen anybody being poisoned from bread. I believe that people can consume bread, baklava, and rice. I don’t think that it will cause harm if consumed with restrainedly. In the new era, we want Turkish people to be at peace with bread. We will change the misconception on bread through offering einkorn bread to all Turks. One of the most important problems in the sector is overproduction and oversupply. Since the price of bread is cheap in Turkey, there is too much waste. Around 5 million loaves of bread are wasted daily. People will change their perception when the price reaches its real price. Secondly, we can prevent the waste by producing quality bread, production planning as well as consumption of packaged bread. Conscious consumer values bread. People waste bread since they don’t buy bread as much as they eat. I believe that if restaurants, catering firms, schools and hospital offer small loaves of 50 grams, this waste can be prevented to a certain extent.

A PRICE HIKE IS NECESSARY FOR THE SECTOR TO SURVIVE What is the biggest problem that you are facing with as a sector? As a Parliament Member of the Istanbul Chamber of Industry and the President of the Milled Cereal Products and Bakery Products’ Committee representing 282 firms including mills, flour facilities, and bread factories, I can say that for a baker all inputs have increased during the last two years. Labor, raw materials, and shipping costs have increased. Prices of all inputs including flour, yeast, energy, and packages are based on Euro and USD. There has been a substantial cost increase. A price hike is necessary for the sector to survive.

Another important problem is that there has been lack of skilled labor. The primary factor in the lack of skilled labor is that there has been no bakery and bread school in Turkey. The sector train personnel within their means. Lack of school is the biggest handicap.

Can you tell us about your future investments? We will install another production line at our Çerkezköy production facility in the second quarter of this year. Currently, we have three production lines. From June, with the fourth production line, our capacity will increase.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had a request from TOBB and industrialists to increase employment. What kind of studies will you carry out in this period? We love our country, our president, and investment. When the President talked about hiring one worker more, we supported this initiative by hiring 5 and when he talked about 2, we hired 10 workers. In the following process, we will sustain to increase the employment.

Your company produces in mass. Where do you procure your raw materials, flour in particular? We meet our needs from the free market. We procure raw materials from the best companies in the sector, from those with a convenient physical infrastructure and who can provide us with the best service. Our food engineer conducts market research continuously. We do not carry out this research only for flour but for all raw materials. Our control mechanism for flour, yeast and salt intake is constantly in operation. In order to produce quality bread, you need to have a physical and technical infrastructure. You should have employees that are connected to this profession with love. We have employees some of which have been working for 20-25 years in our facility. We have employees who are working as father and son.

What are your expectations for the sector’s future? Turkey is self-sufficient on wheat as a country. I believe that the future is bright for the sector. Substantial investments are being made. The sector needs investment in training. We need skilled labor. Physical infrastructures need to be reviewed. As the chamber, we do our best in this regard. But we know that the sector has problems with profitability. I know that a large part of our colleagues is trying to achieve something wholeheartedly. But as these activities are related to financial possibilities, the sector needs to earn money. The competition in the sector should not be deadly.

Ayşe Aytekin Food Engineer Msc / Undano Production Director

‘WE PRODUCE BREAD, KNEADED WITH LABOR’ Our bread varieties that we have produced for the national and local markets are already available. As a food company, we know that the future of food lurks in the past. Today, customers are in quest of naturalness in products they buy. As Undano, we developed a new product to meet this demand. As a Kastamonu company, we decided that it should be Kastamonu Einkorn Wheat, which we need to consider before anything else. The einkorn wheat is genetically unmodified for thousands of years and is good for people’s health. By protecting the natural flavor of this product, we developed the sourdough bread. For this, the research and development team, under my supervision, carried out development works for months to produce the best bread. As the result, we came up with a special type of bread kneaded with labor.

We cook our bread on order. The production and its fermentation take about 72 hours. The sour yeast we use in the fermentation is made up of einkorn wheat flour and water and it is additive-free. We add sea salt. Although it does not contain any preserver, it can endure for 10 days at refrigerator at +4 Celsius. Although our signature is sourdough einkorn bread, we also have 4 types of bread, namely nutty, olive, rye and whole wheat bread in the sourdough group. The most important feature of these bread types is that we use natural yeast apart from einkorn flour. We feed our yeast culture with long history and use this in our bread. There has been a huge demand for bread that smells natural. We invite our customers to visit www.undano.com.tr to see our bread types.

Regardless of fierce discussion over bread consumption in Turkey, prominent players of this sector present new kinds of bread one after another to the market. After long research and development process, Undano joined the bread brands that supply bread, which is made of genetically unmodified natural flour that is good for people’s health. Mehmet Umur, Chairman of the Board Undano, told that Turkish people will be at peace with bread with einkorn (siyez) bread against those who recommend not consuming bread, and bread will have its respectful place in people’s diet. Speaking to BBM Magazine, Mehmet Umur said the company takes firm steps forward. “We produce our bread with years of experience and meticulous care with our first day’s care,” Umur said. The magazine sat down with Mehmet Umur to talk about the problems of the sector, bread waste, and future investment. Mr. Umar, could you tell us about your company and works?The company was founded in 1947. We have a factory engaged in industrial production on an area of 25 thousand square meters at Çerkez Organized Industrial Site. At this facility, we make high-capacity bread production. This facility is one of the highest capacity factories in Turkey that produce packaged bread production. Under Undano brand, we produce toast bread, sandwich bread, whole wheat bread and hamburger bread. At Çerkezköy Facility, we produce 25 types of packaged bread. At Yenibosna Facility, we produce bread for the service sector, hospitals, and catering firms. Again, at Bakırköy Facility, which has been operational since the foundation of the company, we both produce and sell bread to the end consumers. Mr. Umar, you are from Kastamonu. What kind of works are you doing regarding your hometown?The research and development team, under the supervision of food senior engineer, developed sourdough einkorn bread. We produce bread out of einkorn wheat from Kastamonu region that stayed genetically unmodified for 10 thousand years. This wheat with 14 chromosomes is as valuable as gold. We aimed to contribute to farmers from Kastamonu that cultivated einkorn wheat known as the ancestor of wheat and also aimed to add value to our brand. We have been working so that Turkish people became aware of this value and deliver this bread all over Turkey. How did people react to the einkorn bread?Those who taste cannot give it up. We made the launch of our bread in the fair. Additionally, we decided to sell bread with e-trade. The first data are very nice and there is a great demand. The demand has surpassed our expectation. We have a substantial market share. We want Turkish people to taste this value of Kastamonu through e-trade. On order, we cook tailor-made bread within 72 hours and deliver this order anywhere in Turkey. This bread can last up to 10 days. Our food engineer continues to check every step of the production. We apply all the quality certifications we have received at all production stages. 50-GRAM-BREAD CAN PREVENT WASTEMr. Umar, you are also the President of the Milled Cereal Products and Bakery Products’ Committee at the Istanbul Chamber of Industry. What can you say about waste and consumption of bread in Turkey? How can this waste be prevented?Some nutritionists and dietitians advise people not to eat bread while some others advise them to eat three slices or two slices or one slice. There is too much disinformation that makes people hesitant on what to eat. As Undano, we advise people to eat bread in an understanding of ‘less is more.’ So far, I have not seen anybody being poisoned from bread. I believe that people can consume bread, baklava, and rice. I don’t think that it will cause harm if consumed with restrainedly. In the new era, we want Turkish people to be at peace with bread. We will change the misconception on bread through offering einkorn bread to all Turks. One of the most important problems in the sector is overproduction and oversupply. Since the price of bread is cheap in Turkey, there is too much waste. Around 5 million loaves of bread are wasted daily. People will change their perception when the price reaches its real price. Secondly, we can prevent the waste by producing quality bread, production planning as well as consumption of packaged bread. Conscious consumer values bread. People waste bread since they don’t buy bread as much as they eat. I believe that if restaurants, catering firms, schools and hospital offer small loaves of 50 grams, this waste can be prevented to a certain extent. A PRICE HIKE IS NECESSARY FORTHE SECTOR TO SURVIVEWhat is the biggest problem that you are facing with as a sector?As a Parliament Member of the Istanbul Chamber of Industry and the President of the Milled Cereal Products and Bakery Products’ Committee representing 282 firms including mills, flour facilities, and bread factories, I can say that for a baker all inputs have increased during the last two years.  Labor, raw materials, and shipping costs have increased. Prices of all inputs including flour, yeast, energy, and packages are based on Euro and USD. There has been a substantial cost increase. A price hike is necessary for the sector to survive. Another important problem is that there has been lack of skilled labor. The primary factor in the lack of skilled labor is that there has been no bakery and bread school in Turkey. The sector train personnel within their means. Lack of school is the biggest handicap. Can you tell us about your future investments?We will install another production line at our Çerkezköy production facility in the second quarter of this year. Currently, we have three production lines. From June, with the fourth production line, our capacity will increase. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had a request from TOBB and industrialists to increase employment. What kind of studies will you carry out in this period?We love our country, our president, and investment. When the President talked about hiring one worker more, we supported this initiative by hiring 5 and when he talked about 2, we hired 10 workers. In the following process, we will sustain to increase the employment. Your company produces in mass. Where do you procure your raw materials, flour in particular?We meet our needs from the free market. We procure raw materials from the best companies in the sector, from those with a convenient physical infrastructure and who can provide us with the best service. Our food engineer conducts market research continuously. We do not carry out this research only for flour but for all raw materials. Our control mechanism for flour, yeast and salt intake is constantly in operation. In order to produce quality bread, you need to have a physical and technical infrastructure. You should have employees that are connected to this profession with love. We have employees some of which have been working for 20-25 years in our facility. We have employees who are working as father and son. What are your expectations for the sector’s future?Turkey is self-sufficient on wheat as a country. I believe that the future is bright for the sector. Substantial investments are being made. The sector needs investment in training. We need skilled labor. Physical infrastructures need to be reviewed. As the chamber, we do our best in this regard. But we know that the sector has problems with profitability. I know that a large part of our colleagues is trying to achieve something wholeheartedly. But as these activities are related to financial possibilities, the sector needs to earn money. The competition in the sector should not be deadly.Ayşe AytekinFood Engineer Msc / Undano Production Director‘WE PRODUCE BREAD,KNEADED WITH LABOR’Our bread varieties that we have produced for the national and local markets are already available. As a food company, we know that the future of food lurks in the past. Today, customers are in quest of naturalness in products they buy. As Undano, we developed a new product to meet this demand. As a Kastamonu company, we decided that it should be Kastamonu Einkorn Wheat, which we need to consider before anything else. The einkorn wheat is genetically unmodified for thousands of years and is good for people’s health. By protecting the natural flavor of this product, we developed the sourdough bread. For this, the research and development team, under my supervision, carried out development works for months to produce the best bread. As the result, we came up with a special type of bread kneaded with labor. We cook our bread on order. The production and its fermentation take about 72 hours. The sour yeast we use in the fermentation is made up of einkorn wheat flour and water and it is additive-free. We add sea salt. Although it does not contain any preserver, it can endure for 10 days at refrigerator at +4 Celsius. Although our signature is sourdough einkorn bread, we also have 4 types of bread, namely nutty, olive, rye and whole wheat bread in the sourdough group. The most important feature of these bread types is that we use natural yeast apart from einkorn flour. We feed our yeast culture with long history and use this in our bread. There has been a huge demand for bread that smells natural. We invite our customers to visit www.undano.com.tr to see our bread types.