Yeast shortages and the bread-baking craze filled news and social media platforms in the past year as home baking skyrocketed amid stay-at-home mandates. Categories like baking mixes, ingredients, and flours are experiencing a sales boom that, while slowing, still continues. According to the Specialty Food Association’s recently released annual State of the Specialty Food Industry research, between 2018 and 2020, the $1.8 billion specialty category grew 41% in dollar sales. By comparison, the total baking mixes, ingredients, and flours category grew 26.2% during the same timeframe.

The bulk of growth occurred in 2020 as consumers stayed closer to home during COVID-19. The category grew 35% between 2019 and 2020. Baking ingredients like cornstarch and rising agents led pandemic-influenced growth, increasing 37% from 2019 to 2020. Flours grew 35% percent in the same period, while baking mixes jumped 28% percent. According to data from market research firm Mintel, 58% of U.S. consumers said they have tried a new cooking/baking recipe since the pandemic started. And with baking specifically, in January 2021, 31% of U.S. consumers said they were baking more often and planned to continue doing so, compared to a year ago, said Melanie Bartelme, global food analyst at Mintel.