Modern Baker is a pioneering bakery brand based in Oxford, UK, that has distinguished itself by merging traditional sourdough baking techniques with cutting-edge food science to create healthier, nutritionally advanced baked goods. Founded in 2015, this innovative company brands itself as a "life sciences company" dedicated to tackling widespread health challenges through better carbohydrate products, and has gained significant recognition for its commitment to quality, provenance, nutrition, and taste. Modern Baker is especially noteworthy for its scientific approach to bread-making and its efforts to revolutionize the concept of bread for the modern consumer, developing items such as the "healthiest loaf ever made". This article explores a range of intriguing facts about Modern Baker, from its origins and product innovations to its collaborations, health focus, and industry impact.
Modern Baker began in Oxford in 2015, starting from a modest setting—a 500 square foot café—before rapidly expanding its ambition and output. The founders brought a unique vision focused on combining artisanal baking traditions with scientific expertise aimed at improving health through superior carbohydrate products. This vision evolved around creating baked goods that are not only delicious but also nutritionally optimized to support better health outcomes, particularly focusing on the benefits of fiber and gut microbiome support.
Unlike many traditional bakeries, Modern Baker integrates food science and clinical research into its product development. Collaborating with institutions such as Newcastle University's Biosciences Institute and Oxford Brookes Centre for Nutrition & Health, the company uses rigorous scientific methods to formulate breads with beneficial plant-based fibers and nutrients. This approach targets slower glucose absorption and enhanced gut health, addressing public concerns around ultra-processed foods and carbohydrate quality.
One of Modern Baker's hallmark achievements is the development of a seeded sourdough loaf dubbed the "healthiest loaf ever made." This bread includes ingredients like barley flour, sunflower seeds, tapioca flour, hemp, and seaweed. It is designed to provide a balanced fiber profile—including soluble, insoluble, and fermentable fibers—that promotes gut microbiome activity and moderation of blood sugar levels. The loaf has garnered attention for redefining expectations about what healthy bread can be.
Beyond bread, Modern Baker offers a broad and growing range of bakery products, including biscuits, sweet bakery items, and a six-strong artisanal bread range available in supermarkets like Ocado, Whole Foods Market, and Selfridges. Their products are organic, naturally sourced, free from additives and refined sugars, and many cater to dietary considerations such as veganism and gluten sensitivity. In recent years, investment has supported scaling production and entering new retail sectors.
Modern Baker is highly committed to ingredient provenance and artisanal craftsmanship. Their baking process involves long fermentation techniques (often 48 hours), emphasizing slow, natural development of flavors and textures. This dedication to quality and tradition contrasts with mass-produced bread, highlighting a modern baker’s ethos that quality nutrition and flavor need not be mutually exclusive.
In 2023, Modern Baker partnered with prominent UK brands like Hovis and Marks & Spencer to launch "Superloaf 5.0," a mass-produced version of their innovative healthy bread. This collaboration broadened consumer access to healthier bread options, reinforced by Modern Baker's "health-plus" approach which focuses on adding beneficial ingredients rather than solely removing undesirable ones. The loaf uses more familiar white flour for broader palate acceptance while retaining added health benefits.
Modern Baker significantly invested in a new R&D facility located near Kidlington, Oxfordshire, expanding their capacity to innovate and experiment with healthier baking. This site supports a team of food scientists and bakers working side by side to develop new recipes and improve nutritional profiles. Their R&D efforts have been bolstered by multiple Innovate UK grants, underscoring the company’s essential role at the cutting edge of health-focused bakery innovation.
As concerns about ultra-processed foods grow globally, Modern Baker has positioned itself at the forefront of the healthy eating movement within the bakery sector. By offering products with enhanced nutrient density and prebiotic fiber content, they challenge negative perceptions of carbohydrates and demonstrate that indulgence and nutrition can coexist. Their efforts contribute to broader public dialogue on sustainable, health-conscious diets.
Modern Baker’s products are sold through premium retailers including Selfridges (London, Birmingham, Manchester), Planet Organic, and online platforms. Their physical café-bakery at 214 Banbury Road in Oxford served as an early consumer experience point, though the business now primarily focuses on national distribution. Their commitment to accessibility ensures healthy baked goods reach a wide and diverse audience.
With recent investments of £2.5 million for expansion into biscuits, cereals, ready meals, and beverages alongside bakery items, Modern Baker is pursuing a broad mission to reshape perceptions of ultra-processed foods and redefine convenience-era nutrition. Their continued collaboration with scientific institutions and retail partners poises them to influence healthier product development throughout the food industry, reaffirming the relevance of bakery innovations in addressing global health crises.
Modern Baker exemplifies a new wave of bakery businesses that carefully blend tradition, scientific research, and health-conscious innovation. From its humble beginnings in Oxford to becoming a leader in healthier, nutrient-dense bread and bakery products, the company challenges old notions about bread and culinary indulgence. Through strategic partnerships, dedicated research, and a focus on quality ingredients, Modern Baker is not only baking bread but also carving a path that may transform the future of how consumers view and enjoy staple foods. As the food landscape continues to evolve, one must wonder: will Modern Baker’s pioneering approach set the standard for bakeries worldwide?