Frequently Asked Questions

Gluten (from Latin gluten "glue") is a protein composite that appears in foods processed from wheat and related species, including barley and rye. It gives elasticity to dough, helping it to rise and to keep its shape, and often giving the final product a chewy texture. Between 0.5 and 1.0 percent of people in the United States are sensitive to gluten due to celiac disease. Note that wheat allergy and celiac disease are different disorders.

• source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten

Hazelnuts are harvested in wet conditions and can often undergo oxidation that leads to rancidity issues in isolated cases. However, these should be few and far between-not frequent enough to cause every loaf to taste bad.

• It contributes to overall flavor.
• In bread, it controls the fermentation rate of yeast.
• It has a strengthening effect on the gluten protein in the dough.

We declare common allergies on our nutritional labels according to food industry regulations. However, we occasionally get questions about other allergens that may be present in the bakery even though they are not on the nutritional label. Because we work with different bakeries across the country for producing our items, we cannot answer questions like these without speaking with you about the specific bread and region in which you purchase it. If you have any specific allergen questions, please call us at 877 4 BREADS (877-427-3237).

Genetically modified soy and corn are currently being cultivated and exported worldwide. These crops are not typically separated from their conventional counterparts. Therefore it’s difficult for manufacturers of material derived from these ingredients to make any absolute guarantee regarding the absence of GMO material. Some of our products contain soybean oil and soy lecithin (emulsifier) and most likely these ingredients contains material from GM stocks.

UPDATE 06/25/11: We found a new bakery in the Northeast that is going to be baking Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon for us. Look for us in Sam's Clubs beginning the week of July 5th throughout Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia.

The inner wrapping is a choice made by individual bakeries. Some choose to inner wrap breads that have toppings in order to keep everything in place and make it easier to bag and seal the breads. We have run our own tests and have concluded that an inner wrapping provides no additional preservation for baked goods.

We've moved East coast production of the Innkeeper's 8 Grain & Innkeeper's Apple Strudel bread to a different facility. Prior to this move, the product was baked in Canada and shipped in for East coast distribution.( For more information about where our products are produced please see http://bread.com/faq#n189 ). The new bakery is using a different production method which may account for a difference in taste and mouth-feel. This was in no way a cost cutting move, rather we were hoping to gain better consistency from the finished product. We have been made aware of some issues regarding the breads coming from the new bakery and are working with the bakery to correct these issues. This does not effect Innkeeper's bread on the West coast.

Sam's Club and BJ's have discontinued Oregon Trail Apple Danish bread. At this time the bread is not being produced.

We develop items and brands for specific grocery or wholesale clubs. In many cases one of brands may be exclusive (i.e. the Innkeeper's brand is managed by Costco so you won't find Innkeeper's breads for sale outside of Costco). In some cases the products are specific to a location (i.e. the Grain Basket brand is found in multiple locations but products are specific to the carrier). In most cases it is up to the individual store or club manager as to what products they carry. (i.e. Not all Sam's Club locations carry Oregon Trail breads. This is the manager's decision). Some of our products are made locally here in Oregon using ingredients from the Pacific Northwest - like our Oregon Bread brand. Since breads have a relatively short shelf-life, we are not able to ship some products long distances.

The Simple Grains line is in a transition phase right now. It used to be in Wild Oats but when Wild Oats was purchased by Whole Foods the line was cut way back. Recently they discontinued the Walnut Cinnamon Swirl Bread all together. We’re hoping to revive the line in the future. I would recommend contacting your retailer where you purchased this item, assuming it was Whole Foods.

Our products are baked in different bakeries across the US and Canada. We set the standards for each product and do our best to make sure each bakery follows the formula. We operate a small bakery in Oregon for specialty items and small runs.

Cranberry Orange bread was once under the Innkeeper's Bed & Breakfast line as well as the Oregon Trail line.

Innkeeper's Cranberry Orange bread has been picked up by Costco Canada on a rotator program. Costco members in Ontario and Quebec will be able to purchase the Cranberry Orange variety between November and January. It has been off the market in the U.S. since 2005 and at this time neither Costco nor Sam's Club plans on bringing it back.

Costco decided to discontinue the Innkeeper's variety. The Innkeeper's brand is exclusive to Costco and all decisions regarding the brand are made by Costco. To contact Costco: http://www.costco.com/Service/FeaturePageLeftNav.aspx?ProductNo=10045080 or by phone at (425) 313-8100 or Costco General Member Services: 800-774-2678.

Sam's Club decided to discontinue the Oregon Trail variety. You can contact Sam's Club at: 888-746-7726 or online at http://www.samsclub.com/shopping/navigate.do?catg=6103

Mango Peach bread was once under the Innkeeper's Bed & Breakfast line. Costco decided to discontinue the variety. The Innkeeper's brand is exclusive to Costco and all decisions regarding the brand are made by Costco. To contact Costco: http://www.costco.com/Service/FeaturePageLeftNav.aspx?ProductNo=10045080 or by phone at (425) 313-8100 or Costco General Member Services: 800-774-2678.

Colors are usually based on what day the product was baked.There isn’t an industry standard for color coding twist ties or Kwik Loks. Individual bakeries use their own system based on which days they’re baking. We would suggest contacting the bakery that produces that product to find out thier coding system.

The Innkeeper's brand is exclusive to Costco. All decisions on this brand come from Costco corporate including which brands are on the market, which brands get discontinued, which varieties are in individual Costco warehouse locations, etc. Contact Costco corporate online or by phone at (425) 313-8100. We thank you for your interest and support.

CLICK HERE to see an article on keeping bread fresh.

Sorry, we are not a commercial bakery we are a research & development company. We don't stock any products locally. Our products are baked by various bakeries across the country under our strict specifications. Neither IBR nor any of the bakeries we work with are set up for mail order, mainly because the cost of shipping loaves of bread across the country is 3-4 times greater than the cost of the bread. This is because bread is a perishable good with a limited shelf life. Try contacting a local retailer about carrying or ordering any product you're interested in.

Bran is the outer covering or "shell" of wheat kernels.

The Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon bread can be found in all Sam's Club locations. Select BJs Wholesale Clubs also carry the raisin variety. It is up to the individual clubs whether or not they carry our products and which varieties they carry.

Sam's Club member hotline: (888) 746-7726 (press 4 for issues with your local Sam's Club, then press 2 for product questions).

Reference numbers for Oregon Trail items:
Oregon Trail Raisin Cinnamon bread: - item#167262 / UPC# 739455000036
Oregon Trail Apple Danish bread: - item#641642 / UPC# 739455000043

The Oregon Trail 100% Whole Wheat^* Bread is produced by Franz Family Bakeries and can be found in many locations throughout the Pacific Northwest.

The apple variety is no longer being produced.

The Innkeeper's brand is exclusive to Costco Wholesale Co. Regional buyers decide what products are stocked in their locations. If you are unable to find an Innkeeper's bread you are looking for please contact Costco and let them know you'd like them to stock one of our breads. We'd love to have all our breads available to our customers.

A plant or animal containing a gene inserted from a different species which causes the plant or animal to express the desirable traits of that species. An example of a GMO is a potato that has had its genes combined with that of the bacteria Bacillus Thuringienisis. The new potato produces a toxin that protects it from pests.

For answers, and to find experiments, pictures and step by step instructions for making bread, visit this web-site. www.howstuffworks.com/bread.htm

The dictionary gives this definition: "A stable food made from flour or meal mixed with other dry and liquid ingredients, usually combined with a leavening agent, and kneaded, shaped into loaves and baked."

There is no one person or date attributed to the "invention" of bread. The web-site listed is great for outlining the history of bread. It covers quite a bit and includes great pictures, too. It even has Egyptian hieroglyphics. www.botham.co.uk/bread/history1.htm or try these sites: www.bakersfederation.org.uk www.fabflour.co.uk

You can't just say that white or wheat bread molds the fastest. Molding time depends on many factors. Two items which contribute to mold are moisture content of the bread and if "mold inhibitors" or "preservatives" are in the bread. If you want more information on wheat, types of flour, storage, and nutrition, try this web-site. www.wheatfoods.org

We have discontinued The Grain Scoop newsletter in order to concentrate all efforts on allowing users to contribute to Bread.com. We may decide to revive the newsletter in the future. Our newsletter was sent out quarterly. Just prior to signing up for the newsletter you should have received a confirmation email to which you must respond to in order to be entered into our subscriber's list. If you haven't received the confirmation email you either mistyped your email address when you signed up or you have an active SPAM filter that is blocking correspondence from Bread.com.

We do however have news updates for Oregon Trail & Innkeepers brands. You can sign up for these individually by visiting their pages.