Delivering consistency in a world of trends

In bakery and confectionery production, everything moves fast: recipes, trends, and production demands. One day it’s gluten-free, the next it’s plant-based or low sugar. While consumer tastes evolve, expectations stay the same: high product quality, consistent output, and minimal downtime.

 

But meeting those goals isn’t easy in environments with strict hygiene compliance, energy-intensive processes, and rising operational costs.

 

Whether you're mass-producing pastries or crafting delicate confections, efficiency, cleanliness, and control are essential. ABB supports bakery and confectionery producers with food-grade automation and energy-efficient technologies designed for reliable, hygienic operations.

 

From mixing and baking to handling and packaging, our solutions help optimize energy use, reduce waste, and maintain steady production, even as demands change. In a space defined by rapid shifts, staying consistent is what sets you apart.

Overcoming challenges in the bakery & confectionery

The bakery and confectionery industry is under constant pressure to deliver high-quality, consistent products while managing production efficiency, safety, and sustainability. From strict hygiene standards to evolving consumer demands and energy-intensive processes, manufacturers face a range of challenges that require smart, scalable solutions. Understanding these hurdles is the first step toward building a more resilient and future-ready operation.

Ensuring hygienic compliance under harsh cleaning routines

Tough washdowns demand corrosion-resistant equipment that ensures hygiene.

Managing unplanned downtime in high-throughput production

Unplanned stops lead to spoilage, delays, and waste.

Reducing energy waste while scaling output

High energy use drives costs. Efficient systems help scale sustainably.

How we can help you

Offering

Tailored offering for baking and confectionery innovation

Detect arc faults before they escalate in bakery and confectionery lines

Enhance personnel safety with fast arc mitigation

Protect workers and avoid costly stops with rapid arc fault detection tailored for high-demand food production environments.

Install food-grade conduit systems that withstand washdowns

Meet hygiene compliance with zero compromise

Ensure hygienic, contamination-free operations with stainless steel conduit systems built to handle aggressive washdowns and cleaning chemicals.

Cut energy costs with high-efficiency drives

Reliable performance in humid and hygienic settings

Improve efficiency and reduce downtime with ABB solutions for food processing. Our ACS series drives with PLC control help optimize conveyors, mixers, conches, and other equipment, saving energy and improving output. For ovens and electric heating, the DCT880 system drive delivers precise temperature control, ensuring consistent product quality and lower operating costs.

Hygienic motors that rise to the occasion

Motors built for tough food environments

In bakeries, motors must withstand heat, humidity, and washdowns without downtime. ABB NEMA class motors, including stainless steel, food safe, washdown duty and the IP69 SP5+ Food Safe motor, provide durability, cleanability and precise control. ABB IEC class motors, including SynRM, HDP and ATEX certified designs, support dough mixing, conveyors, cooling and packaging with hygienic, energy efficient performance.

Ty-Rap® detectable cable ties help mitigate contamination risks in the food & beverage sector

Throughout its history, ABB has pioneered technologies that shape the world around us from the generation of power to clever innovations to make it easier for customers to focus on their core business.

Resources

The power of chocolate

The designers at SACMI Packaging & Chocolate have adopted ABB IE5 synchronous reluctance motors (SynRM) paired with the optimal ABB drive, the ideal solution for the conching process, where the product is worked for several hours

Solutions to boost sustainability, reliability and safety in the grain, flour and baked goods industr

ABB's advanced solutions can help grain, flour production and baking businesses optimize sustainability, reliability and safety across the entire value chain, from farm to fork.

The Village Bakery saves £20,000 a year with ABB drives

Improved speed control on one of its production lines is enabling The Village Bakery to save £20,000 per year at its Abenbury Way site in Wrexham.

Preventative maintenance on robots: ABB & Pioneer Foods Group

Pioneer Foods Group is a leading South African food and beverage producer which exports its products all over the world. Its Shakaskraal bakery near Durban is its largest, and mainly serves a Portugal-sized province of KwaZulu-Natal.

ABB technology runs refrigeration system at Switzerland's largest bakery

150-year-old Coop reduces carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by 10,000 tons per year at new logistics center for Switzerland’s largest bakery. ABB and Johnson Controls contribute to this success by delivering energy efficient motors and variable speed drives (VSDs) to the ultra-modern refrigeration system.

Efficient refrigeration control

Reducing operating costs and CO₂ emissions with AC drives. Refrigeration can consume up to 70% of the electricity used in food manufacturing. ABB’s AC drives and high-efficiency motors optimize compressors, pumps, condensers, and evaporators, cutting energy consumption while maintaining stable cooling conditions. The result: reduced operating costs, improved equipment life, quieter operations, and a smaller carbon footprint.

Control solutions for precise and consistent mixing

Whether mixing in batches or in a continuous stream, the ability to control the mixer’s speed and torque affects both production speed and process uptime.

ABB in action