Course:FNH200/Projects/2025/Interview with Breka Bakery and Café

Introduction

For our project, we interviewed the Production Manager and co-founder of ‘Breka Bakery & Café’, and asked questions that would link real life practices of food science to our course content. The topics of interest were the overall food regulations, including food safety, product making & testing, packaging & labeling, and customer feedback. We were able to identify connections and disconnections with the theory aspect of food science with real life practice in this specific bakery.

Breka’s Factory and Café - Photos on Site

5 Points of Interest

Youtube Video - https://youtu.be/TSF5ssknUA0

1. Labels for identification and basic info: module 4

Labels, though small, are essential for providing consumers with basic product information and are regulated by the CFIA, though cafés are often exempt from extensive details since their food is for immediate consumption.

2. Ingredient handling in production areas: module 2

Proper ingredient handling is also key - keeping items organized, using internal labels, and sanitizing work areas frequently helps prevent cross-contamination and supports claims like “gluten-friendly.”

3. Packaging for freshness and hygiene: module 4,5

Packaging plays a major role in preserving freshness and hygiene by protecting against air, moisture, and contaminants (ultimately slowing spoilage processes like microbial growth and oxidation), with materials chosen based on their barrier properties.

4. Storage temperature of baked goods: module 5

Storage temperatures are strictly maintained - soups stay above 60°C, coolers below 4°C, and freezers ideally under -18°C - to limit microbial growth and keep foods like dairy, eggs, and meat safe. The concept of the danger zone (4°C to 60°C) is applied to the site’s storage practices, and minimizes the risk of food-borne illness.

5. Method of Delivery: module 6

Delivery methods focus on time, temperature, and cleanliness to prevent spoilage and ensure products arrive in good condition, highlighting that logistics are just as crucial as production for food safety.

Interview Transcript:

Date: July 22 2025

Interviewer: FNH 200 942 Team 29

Interviewee: Natalie Steen

Name of the work place: Breka Bakery & Café

Role of the interviewee at the company/institute: Co-Owner and Production Manager

Q1: What do you do as part of your role?

I am the Production Manager at Breka Bakery, and I oversee the quality of our products and manage any quality issues that come up. I’m also involved in research and development, helping to create and implement new products. I’m responsible for ordering and receiving ingredients and supplies, and I work closely with the various department production managers to ensure everything runs smoothly. Breka has about eight production departments, including sandwiches, overnight baking, morning and afternoon production shifts, bread, cakes, cookies, and deliveries, so my role is to coordinate among these to maintain consistency and efficiency.

Q2: Can you tell us about your background and how your time at Breka Bakery & Café started?

I am one of the founding owners of Breka, along with my husband, brother, mother, and father-in-law. My dad had a chain of restaurants, so I grew up around the food industry and learned a lot from him. Initially, I studied nursing at Langara College, planning to enter the medical field, but I’ve always loved cafes and their atmosphere. My husband and I noticed there weren’t many late-night food options, and we wanted to create something similar to mall pretzels but with our own twist. We also wanted to introduce bourekas, a Jewish pastry, which inspired the name Breka. With family support, we bought a German bakery on Fraser Street and rebranded it, slowly growing into what Breka is today.

Q3: What do you like about working in the food industry?

I really enjoy food itself - tasting different items when testing and experimenting with products is a big part of the fun. I like the creativity involved in developing new products and experimenting with ingredients and recipes. Handling food hands-on and seeing how small changes affect the final product keeps things interesting.

Q4: How do you ensure food safety and quality control in daily operations?

Food safety is relatively straightforward because the government has clear rules that we follow. Each location has a food safety plan, which is like a manual with all the procedures we must follow. We check temperatures multiple times a day and keep records. Equipment sanitation, handwashing, and other hygiene practices are mandatory. Also, at least one FoodSafe-certified person must be present at all times. For example, staff wear hairnets, masks, and cannot wear jewelry or carry phones in production areas to minimize contamination. We also make sure nothing that falls on the floor is used. Our quality control is well educated across employees, thus the same high standards are consistently applied throughout production.

Q5: Can you describe the food safety plan implemented in your factory?

We have a food safety plan and a food safety monitoring plan, and all employees are trained on them. We place thermometers throughout the production areas and conduct regular temperature checks; for example, soups must be kept at or above 60°C. We record production dates and shelf lives for all items. To prevent cross-contamination, we sanitize surfaces regularly using commercial sanitizers and enforce strict handwashing procedures. Staff must also wear protective clothing, and personal items are prohibited in production zones. The constant presence of trained FoodSafe personnel helps us ensure compliance.

Q6: Could you walk us through the process of testing and launching a new item at Breka?

Launching a new product starts with a lot of research to decide what kind of item we want to create. We think carefully about how it can be produced on a large scale without sacrificing quality and freshness, which includes ensuring a reliable supply of ingredients and considering how the item will be delivered to stores. It often involves a lot of trial and error to figure out how it will behave during production and how it can be heated or stored. Some products take years to perfect; for example, our Black Forest cake took about two years to launch. Sometimes we run into issues like when we wanted to use chestnuts for a product but lost the supplier at the last minute and couldn’t launch it. We also consider what products need to be removed from the showcase to make room for new ones.

Q7: When do you decide not to sell or remove a product?

Decisions about removing products can be contentious. Sometimes it’s straightforward, like with seasonal items such as pumpkin pie or Christmas specialties that naturally come and go. Other times, we look at sales data to see which items aren’t performing well. If we can’t find a good ingredient substitute or if customers seem bored with an older product, that’s also a factor. However, we try to keep the classics even if we’re tired of them because customers expect them. We also monitor how products do when produced in large batches, and customer feedback is a major influence.

Q8: What role does customer feedback play in your decisions about ingredients or menu changes?

Customer feedback is huge for us! It really drives our decisions; we pay close attention to what they say. When we change a product, we especially listen to their responses. Most feedback comes through reactions of customers on site, like selling rate, expression, and comments. Another way that responses reach us is through emails. If a product has loyal fans, even if it sells in small quantities, this is taken into account for the continuation or development in the future.

Q9: Have you or your team received questions from customers about ingredients, allergens, or additives?

Yes, we get lots of questions about ingredients and allergens. We update our ingredient lists regularly, but we don’t have very detailed nutritional information for everything yet, which we know customers want. It’s a priority for us to develop nutritional data in the future, as people have become more food conscious and want to know exactly what goes into their system.

Q12: We know that we aim to use all natural ingredients, are there any chances when artificial ingredients ‘must’ be used? Why?

I need to think a lot about this one…we have a lot of products. We do have to use artificial ingredients sometimes, like adding red food colour to the red velvet sponge. We will have to use artificial ingredients if there is no other alternative that works I guess, or if we are making a very traditional recipe that has an artificial ingredient as part of the recipe. I can’t really think of any examples other than the red velvet of the top of my head though.

Q10: Have you noticed anything about the demand or availability of your products over the years? Any trends?

There are both short-term and long-term trends. Recently, matcha has become very popular. Longer-term, there’s been a steady rise in vegan and plant-based options, as well as interest in locally sourced ingredients. Conscious eating - being aware of food sources, quality, and the amount of processing - has become a very big trend, which I personally appreciate as a consumer and would like to see grow.

Q11: How do you decide on alternatives for original products to introduce to the menu? How do you respond to the different consumer trends and needs, such as gluten-free diets?

We avoid using substitutes entirely. For example, we don't use alternatives like Aspartame or stevia for sugar. Instead, we try to include vegan and gluten-friendly options. For instance, we offer salads without meat or gluten-containing products, although since everything is made in-house, there’s always some risk of cross-contamination. That’s why we use terms like “friendly” rather than claiming these products are completely free from allergens.

Q13: Have food regulations ever influenced how you market or label your products?

No. We haven’t let regulations dictate our marketing, but we do aim to keep our products clean, natural, and free of processed ingredients. Our goal is to have only clean products with natural ingredients. Even for our vegan items, we try to avoid artificial meat substitutes. Moving forward, we want to source more organic ingredients, like using only organic flour. Our marketing reflects our outlook more than regulatory requirements.

Q14: Do you have any concerns or puzzles about food science?

Definitely. Baking is a science, and for that reason requires much research, but sometimes small changes in the process cause big differences in the final product, and we don’t always understand why. For example, with our Basque matcha cheesecake, sometimes the top is not burnt enough so we bake it with higher temperature and less baking time. But this causes the cakes’ texture to change completely. We rely a lot on trial and error, but it would be helpful to know the scientific causes behind these reactions so we could predict outcomes and fix issues more efficiently.

Response to Interviewee Question

(transcript of email)

Q: Hi Edan!

I really enjoyed our interview and had a lot of fun sharing what happens here at Breka! At the end of the interview you mentioned that I should reply if I ever had any questions related to food science, to which I told you all the time! Baking is a science in itself, and there are a lot of times where we’ll make small changes to recipes and they’ll have a big effect on the final product. Typically we figure things out through trial and error, but we would love to understand the science behind it to help us predict changes and know how to fix it. For example with our newest product, the matcha basque cheesecake, when we were testing it there was a point where the top wasn't burnt enough. To fix it we tried slightly increasing the temperature and reducing the baking time, but the result was that the cake had a completely different texture. We eventually figured out the correct temperature and bake times, but we’d love to know the scientific reason for why this happened.

Best wishes, Natalie Steen

A: Hi Natalie,

Thank you for reaching out and for your kind message! I really enjoyed our interview as well - it was a pleasure learning about everything going on at Breka. Like you said, baking is a science, and it was cool to see how Breka applies scientific principles like experimentation and control variables to try to figure what causes a product to turn out a certain way. The example you shared with the matcha Basque cheesecake is a perfect case of how temperature and time can impact not just color, but texture, moisture distribution, and protein/lipid interactions within the cake.

I'd be more than happy to help explain the food science behind this problem you presented. For your cheesecake example: when you increased the temperature and reduced the time, the outside likely cooked much faster, causing premature protein coagulation and water loss at the surface, while the centre didn’t get the gradual heat it needed for that signature creamy texture, instead usually resulting in an almost-liquid texture that is unappealing to the average consumer. Similarly if you bake at too high a heat for too long, the heat can cause the centre to dry out too much and result in a crumbly texture and a possibly overcooked surface.

Also, the Maillard reaction, which is a non-enzymatic browning process that takes place when food is heated and causes the signature burnt /caramelized top, is highly dependent on the ingredients used, as well as temperature and baking time. Because this chemical reaction happens from the interplay of proteins and sugars, an alternative solution would be to slightly increase sugar in the recipe or add a sweet glaze on the cake before baking. Here are some articles on the Maillard reaction if you'd like to learn more. Hopefully they can provide further insight as to how to control the caramelization of the sugars to your liking! https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0956713523003110, https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9511141/

To summarize, some trial and error is unavoidable as it's impossible to account for all the variables at play, especially when considering how batch sizes or how different ovens affect temperature or humidity, but hopefully this gave you a better idea of what causes each of these changes, and how you can adjust the next batch to accommodate for the issue. If you ever have any other questions regarding food science, feel free to send them our way! We’d love to help out in any way we can!

Best regards, Edan S.

Interview Summary & Reflection

This interview with Natalie, the Production Manager and co-founder of ‘Breka Bakery & Café’, a prominent feature in Vancouver’s café scene, gave us insight into the complex intersection between food science, business strategy, and consumer demand in a successful 24/7 food operation. Her role spans quality assurance, research and development (R&D), and daily production coordination across eight bakery departments. Her responsibilities in directing these departments align closely with multiple topics discussed in our FNH 200 course, with a variety of connections to food safety systems, product development, ingredient decision and handling, preservation techniques, and the influence of consumer perception on food processing.

One of the most prominent themes in the interview was Breka’s dedication to food safety and hygiene, which closely aligns with principles covered in Module 4: Food Safety and government guidelines. Mrs. Steen explained that each Breka location operates under a comprehensive Food Safety Plan. These plans outline specific protocols for employee hygiene (e.g., mandatory handwashing, hairnets, mask use, no personal jewelry), equipment sanitation, and temperature monitoring; all protocols are followed by every employee and demonstrates good GMPs (Module 4 - Good Manufacturing Practices, Module 7 - Preservation of foods by Low Temperature ). The concept of HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) and other standard operating procedures are used faithfully to ensure microbial safety. Also, she mentioned protocols for the storage of the foods; for example, that soups must be kept above 60°C, reflecting the danger zone concept addressed in Module 5, where microbial growth accelerates between 4°C and 60°C. Additionally, her comments on shelf life documentation and contamination prevention directly reflect what we learned about food spoilage, microbial growth, and hygienic handling to ensure food safety and shelf-life stability. Furthermore, the presence of at least one Food Safe-certified employee on site at all times reinforces the importance of trained personnel in upholding food safety standards.

Interconnected with this topic was Natalie’s emphasis on the effort to control cross-contamination, which is especially important due to Breka’s multi-departmental production system. The use of commercial-grade sanitizers, restricted phone usage, and disallowing the use of dropped ingredients are all consistent with the biological hazard control measures outlined in early lessons of Module 4, in compliance with Section 7 of the Food and Drugs Act. These procedures minimize the risk of foodborne illness and ensure safe, high-quality food for customers.

On this topic, as FNH 200 students, our goal was to understand how concepts like microbial control, thermal processing, and food system management manifest beyond the classroom - and what gaps may exist between theory and practice. While these procedures are followed consistently, it became clear they are largely habitual or simply following health guidelines. They are not always grounded in a deep understanding of the science behind them. This highlighted a potential disconnect between front-line food handling and food science literacy.

In terms of food deterioration and shelf-life management, Mrs. Steen highlighted the challenges of maintaining product quality and freshness, particularly for high-moisture products like cakes and sandwiches. While Breka is not producing mass amounts of shelf-stable products, her emphasis on the importance of proper preservation and processing (Module 6) is a fundamental part of Food Formulation Science (FFS). Her discussion here reflects content from Module 5, which emphasizes the role of water activity (Aw), temperature, and microbial growth in limiting shelf life. Breka addresses this by tracking documented production dates and conducting regular quality checks - practical applications of deterioration theory.

We also discussed the challenges of scaling recipes and maintaining consistency in mass production. Mrs. Steen provided detailed information about Breka’s product development and testing process, which involves extensive research, trial-and-error, and often takes long periods of time - sometimes years - to finalize a single menu item due to the delicacy of certain recipes. She described trial-and-error processes when altering baking times or temperatures, which relates to concepts such as chemical and enzymatic changes during food preparation (Modules 2 & 3). For instance, she described how a minor adjustment in baking time and temperature transformed the texture of their Matcha Basque Cheesecake, underscoring the role of thermal kinetics, protein denaturation, and possibly Maillard browning in determining final product characteristics (Modules 2 & 3). There are specific scientific reasons for issues in the production, yet visual cues and trial-and-error are relied on more frequently than scientific metrics - an insight that showed us how taking a food course or consulting food scientists could offer technical guidance to streamline and standardize production. Although Mrs. Steen noted that Breka’s team primarily uses empirical testing methods, her curiosity about the “why” behind these changes - such as how to make maillard reactions consistent in cakes - indicates a strong desire for deeper scientific understanding of the type of knowledge that food science seeks to answer.

Moreover, Breka does not use formal preference tests for their baked goods, which is incongruent with the types of preference tests explained in Module 3: Sensory Evaluation Methods, but uses on-site experience and casual feedback to confirm the liking of their product. Therefore, Breka is familiar with accepting consumer feedback and is aware of customers who want and/or are concerned with preservatives, additives, and substitutes, depending on the current consumption trends. Natalie confirmed that the bakery intentionally avoids substitutes and artificial ingredients where possible. Additives or substitutes for “original” ingredients are not used, and the bakery is moving toward sourcing from organic supply chains. So, Breka is not moving in parallel to the trend covered in Module 3: Food Additives and Alternatives, which explores how industry formulators accommodate customer needs while managing functional limitations. Natalie acknowledged the growing demand for natural, vegan, and gluten-friendly products; they aim to provide options that align with conscious eating values, such as clean-label and plant-based ingredients instead of seeking a substitute ingredient. However, there are some exceptions, namely the use of red food coloring for the red velvet cake, which cannot easily be replaced by a more “natural” substitute, and cannot be removed from the product or else the cake would lose its signature velvet colour. (Module 3 - additives like coloring agents and its function to enhance positive perception).

The interview also touched on the complexity of catering to consumer demands, especially around dietary restrictions and allergens, while handling products in a facility that regularly handles nuts, dairy, and gluten. The bakery does their best to keep ingredients separate, but complete prevention of cross-contamination is difficult. Realistically, there are limitations in allergen control, such as the risk of cross-contamination in-house. Allergies, for example, to peanut protein, can be severe; residues of peanut allergens cannot be completely removed from processing equipment even with proper cleaning and sanitation. This underscores the importance of transparent labeling and the use of terms like “___ - friendly” rather than “___ - free” (Module 4). The conversation reinforced how consumer expectations are sometimes at odds with practical product production limitations, and how trust is maintained through transparency and realistic communication.

One thing to note was that despite their commitment to natural ingredients and transparent communication, Mrs. Steen acknowledged that Breka has not yet implemented full nutritional labeling or complete allergen specification data. Products sold at cafés are typically exempt from including extensive lists or nutrition facts tables because they are prepared and sold for immediate consumption. Nevertheless, this is a slight disconnect between our course’s emphasis on food literacy and Breka’s current operational capabilities. While customers increasingly expect detailed disclosure about ingredients and allergens due to the Food Labelling requirements based on Consumer Packaging and Labelling Regulations (Module 4), smaller businesses like Breka often face logistical barriers when attempting to deliver on these expectations. These are often due to the specifics set out in law and the quantity they would require to produce for product, requiring both additional machine and material, as well as software and manpower.

Interestingly, Mrs. Steen stated that regulations have not significantly influenced their operational choices. Their marketing reflects their outlook more than regulatory requirements, and labels are not made fancier than the product is for appeal. Yet, their adherence to requirements (ex. quality and ingredient purity) aligns with the broader marketing and functional roles of food science theories (ex. packaging covered in Module 9). For example, while she did not reference technologies such as Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) or vacuum sealing, the principles discussed in that module - such as minimizing oxygen exposure to delay staling or microbial growth - still implicitly inform Breka’s efforts to maintain freshness, especially for delicate items like cakes and cookies.

What was most noticeable through the interview was how much of Natalie’s work balances tradition, business operations, and food safety with minimal input from theoretical food science. Many decisions are driven by efficiency and intuition. As students in FNH, this challenges us to think about how we can better bridge that gap; there must be approachable ways of translating technical knowledge into accessible, actionable strategies for food handlers.

Looking forward, this interview helped us recognize that improving food literacy in the workplace - especially around science-based reasoning - can have real impacts on safety, quality, and even staff training. Supporting knowledge-sharing through short workshops, simplified scientific guides, or partnerships between food scientists and business owners could empower workers like Natalie and improve operations overall.

Potential exam question

Q: How is shelf life in baked goods and generally perishable foods typically managed in food establishments like cafes?

A. Tracking production dates, conducting regular quality checks of the food & environment

B. Track production dates of cakes and other refrigerated items only, conducting regular quality checks

C. Production dates don’t need to be tracked so long as products are sold as soon as possible

D. Track expiration dates of each individual ingredient used for baking each batch, disposing of items if expired past the soonest date

Correct answer: A

An explanation of why your question should be on the final exam:

This question provides insight into how food establishments may, in reality, choose to manage their products, in comparison to what we have learned to be the most optimal through the course material. While the course modules provide extensive information on many aspects of food science, observing a real eatery can provide different, but no less valuable, insight. The question brings attention to the dissociative differences between food establishment practices and food science methodologies, providing a demonstration of how in-depth food science knowledge, such as this course material, can be beneficially applied in real life.

References

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 2: Chemical and Physical Properties of Food.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver.

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 3: Fat and Sugar Substitutes.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver.

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 4: Food Standards, Regulations and Guides.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver.

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 5: Rational for Food Preservation.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 6: Thermal Preservation of Foods.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver

Chan, Judy C.K. “Module 7: Preservation of foods by Low Temperature.” CanvasUBC. (FNH_V 200 942 2025SS), July 2025, Vancouver

Kathuria, Deepika, et al. “Maillard Reaction in Different Food Products: Effect on Product Quality, Human Health and Mitigation Strategies.” Food Control, vol. 153, 9 June 2023, p. 109911, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0956713523003110, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foodcont.2023.109911.

Liu, Shuyun, et al. “Insights into Flavor and Key Influencing Factors of Maillard Reaction Products: A Recent Update.” Frontiers in Nutrition, vol. 9, 1 Jan. 2022, p. 973677, europepmc.org/article/pmc/pmc9511141, https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.973677.

Steen, Natalie. “Interview with Breka Bakery and Café.” 22 July 2025.