The number of bakeries in Germany fell again in 2023. As of December 31, 2023, there were 9,242 such businesses with just over 235,000 employees, the Central Association of the German Bakery Trade announced on Saturday. The number of businesses fell by 3.8 percent compared to the previous year, and the number of employees by 1.4 percent. However, the number of sales outlets is still well over 40,000, the Central Association said. The long-term comparison shows that a good quarter of the businesses have closed since 2015. At that time, there were still 12,155 bakeries.

Meanwhile, the number of master’s examinations completed has increased. “A total of 284 journeymen took the master craftsman examination in 2023, which corresponds to an increase of 7.6 percent,” said the central association. “It is too early to speak of a turnaround, but it makes us proud to see how a large number of young people are continuing their high-quality training and thereby helping to maintain the quality standard in our country,” said Roland Ermer, President of the Central Association. In the bakery trade, the master craftsmanship requirement applies - without a completed master craftsman's examination, it is not possible to take over or start a business. The number of trainees fell by 8 percent.