The law of sport is merciless: starters shine on the pitch, substitutes get bored on the bench. It’s a bit like the fate we imagined reserved for raisin breads in bakeries. We saw these poor fellows waiting alone in the window while croissants, babkas and chocolatines – yes, we say chocolatine, but only one debate at a time, please – attracted the spotlight.
To be completely frank, we even found this sad fate a little deserved, as for the author of these lines, the taste of raisin bread prevents him from sitting at other people’s tables. bangers pastries. But it is there, clearly visible in all bakeries in France. And it is therefore clear that Grandpa Raisin is putting up more resistance than expected.
Incredible but true, 41% of French people consume it
After careful investigation, we discovered the incredible truth. Yes, people like raisin bread and buy it willingly. Hold on tight: there are many people who place it on their podium, or even consider it their favorite pastry (yes, yes). This is particularly the case for Laura, who is caught red-handed, with raisin bread in her throat. “You are very kind, but I no longer have 5 years to be satisfied with a pain au chocolat,” taunts the slightly contemptuous thirty-year-old (this survey was carried out in Paris). “Raisin bread has a more subtle taste, more character, and the texture is less disgusting than an apple turnover.”
Laura is not alone. According to an Ifop survey dating from 2019, “The croissant and the French”, 41% of our fellow citizens would eat raisin bread (!), placing it as the fourth favorite pastries behind the ever-present croissants (74%), chocolatines (70%) and brioches (63%), but ahead of chouquettes (40%). . Far from finding consensus in disenchantment, raisin bread is an “either you hate it or you love it”, just like Spritz, licorice or coriander. “Make a topic about the bland croissant instead,” advises another fan while biting into it. Brief presentation of Thierry: 35 years old, teacher, an unconditional love for raisin bread – he eats it every morning.
The faults of his qualities
To teach us tolerance and to respect the preferences of our neighbors, let us count on Marie-Eve Laporte, teacher-researcher at IAE Paris-Sorbonne and specialist in the evolution of eating behavior. “Raisin bread has the faults of its qualities,” she dissects. It is a lower calorie product than pain au chocolat, with more flavor than the croissant, relying on dried fruits rather than chocolate or apple, more consensual and regressive tastes. Its snail shape can also be attractive, it is more easily eaten than a pain au chocolat for example.”
Although it has its aficionados, raisin bread remains light years away from unanimous approval – don’t mess around either. According to the rough estimates of Dominique Anract, president of the National Bakery Confederation, for 3 raisin breads, an establishment will offer on average 10 croissants and 8 chocolatines. This is because the world of baking is closer to a duopoly than to the Variety Club. Bernard Boutboul, president of Gira, a firm specializing in out-of-home sales, points out that 60% of pastries consumed in France are pain au chocolat or croissants, leaving crumbs for others. “They have the most consensual tastes and possess a scope of national identity and international fame. You can’t imagine opening a bakery abroad with the marketing argument of pains aux raisins made in France, when it would work with croissants or pains au chocolat,” he says.
“Not a bestseller, but a must-have”
Like Mimie Mathy in the French favorite ranking, or PSG in the Champions League, pain aux raisins is never first, but always present. “It’s not a bestseller, but it’s a must-have,” confirms Dominique Anract. If a bakery doesn’t have one, it’s not very credible, even if it sells few. »
Visit the Boulangerie du Sentier, in Paris. The manager, Yariv, admits that it is – from a personal point of view – his least favorite product sold. But even here, around 20 pains aux raisins are produced every day – compared to around 200 croissants and 200 pains au chocolat. “It’s necessary, some customers come just for that. Often people in their forties,” agrees the manager. But we are not talking about exclusivity. “If we no longer have one, the customer who wanted one will generally switch to another product. If we run out of croissants or pain au chocolat and the person wanted some, they will go to another bakery.”
The competition of modernity
Definitely incapable of boxing in the same category as the two giants, pain aux raisins therefore fights with apple turnovers, chouquettes… but also more and more “modern” pastries, such as babkzana, New York Rolls or cinnamon breads, which are stealing more and more market share. “We make less raisin bread than before, to make room for these new products which are very successful and sell at all hours,” recognizes Yariv, where purchases of raisin bread are concentrated very early in the morning. or at the very end of the afternoon, after work.
Have we barely discovered the secret of raisin bread before it is already in danger of disappearing? “We will always have raisin bread,” counters Yariv. We want to be a modern bakery, of course, but we also have to respect traditions.” Proof that the product is not condemned, there was already only one left in the window at 10:30 a.m. Rather decisive, the replacement.