[TapTapper]

Hello All

We make a line of tea breads: banana, carrot, zucchini, etc. We have sold whole loaves for a long time and started selling wrapped slices about 2 months ago. They sell very well and some local natural foods stores have started carrying them. They generally last 10 days. The problem: two recent batches have developed mold after about 2 days.

We bake in 16" pullman loaf pans. After the bread is turned out it goes into the freezer to cool completely. After a few hours or days we take out the loaves, slice and wrap them in cello squares that are taped shut. The slices are then delivered to a store or put back in the freezer or the cooler until needed.

I sell these slices at an outdoor farm market and have never had a problem. Even when I get back home after a show and leave them packed for a few days until I dispose of them, I have NEVER seen mold. One store that had mold in 2 days is air conditioned, the other one is not. I give the slices a shelf life of 5 days (loaves get 8), but with this mold issue we are not selling to stores at all until we can sort it out.

When it has been hot there is condensation inside the cello after the slices are wrapped. There is no A/C in our facility so the slices are always going from freezer to a very very warm environment, and then sometimes back into the cold. We are in upstate NY.

One of my Sultan books mentions calcium or sodium propionate as an additive to deter mold. Our products are all natural, so I don't think that would work. He also mentions a scorbic acid spray being used to keep english muffins fresh longer. This seems do-able. Does anyone use this? Is it just vitamin C?

One other baker suggested adding lemon juice because lowering the pH of the batter will help. Also increasing the salt. I think the scorbic acid might do the pH trick. Increasing the acidity of our batter would involve fiddling with the leavening (powder and/or soda), so an after-baking solution would be best.


" This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi; you're my only hope."

Thanks All!
--Pat