Boulart
Boulart deftly balances artisan ideals with state-of-the-art technology to bring better bread to the masses.
For the complete story on Boulart, the 2015 Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery “Bakery of the Year,” see “Industrial artisans extraordinaire.” All images courtesy of Boulart/Luc Robitaille.
NONE
A refusal to compromise continually drives Michel Saillant, president of Boulart Inc, to new levels of success. From the point of founding the bakery in 2007 with one private label customer to today with distribution across all of Canada and the U.S., his vision has remained intact. This drive is a big part of the reason Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery named Boulart its 2015 “Bakery of the Year.”
NONE
“We chose to start big, which is relatively rare for a startup,” says Michel Saillant. “From the start, we decided not to compromise on the space or machinery we sought, nor on the purity and quality of the breads that we wanted to produce in great quantity. This meant that from the get-go, we were built to handle high-volume retail customers looking to make a quality, authentic product accessible. This is what makes us a success.”
NONE
Boulart operates a state-of-the-art bakery located in Lachine, Quebec. The company has distribution across Canada and the U.S.
NONE
The high-velocity lines at the Boulart bakery have many unique characteristics. “We customized our production lines to recreate the artisan process and to be able to respect the longer fermentation times,” says Michel Saillant. “Our three production lines are custom-made and fully automated. We are currently setting up a fourth line, as we have just received our organic certification, and part of the factory will be dedicated to certified-organic production.”
NONE
The range of breads Boulart bakes includes French classics like baguettes and more-specialized products like Belgian loaf, Parisian loaf and fougasse.
NONE
Boulart is perhaps best known for its ciabatta. The most-recent product in the lineup is ciabatta bites, small rolls Michel Saillant suggests pair well with a light meal, such as a soup or a salad, or simply can be enjoyed as a snack.
NONE
One of Boulart’s biggest challenges in its early days of production was its flour. “The protein content is very low in Europe, so you are able to have a dough that is very extensible, very elastic,” says Michel Saillant. “In North America, the higher protein makes it very tough. It’s hard to make Italian dough or a traditional baguette with a tough dough.” By fine-tuning the flour milling, mixing process and dough handling, Boulart has been able to create dough that handles just like European dough, but is made with North American flour. “I can stretch my dough until I can see through it without it breaking,” he says.
NONE
Boulart offers a wide range of non-GMO products, as well as organic. All products are preservative-free and have no added sugar, resulting in a supremely clean label. All Boulart breads are also completely baked, then flash-frozen.
NONE
Michel Saillant describes the Boulart philosophy as “less is more,” with a refusal to compromise. “Whatever we do, we do it completely,” he says. “Shortcuts are forbidden. We are highly focused on both business and product development. It’s never been about conforming to industry standards. It’s about setting new ones.”
NONE
One of Boulart’s greatest strategic advantages, notes Michel Saillant, is the ability to say no. “At Boulart, saying no is a good thing,” he says. “As soon as my business was launched, people tried to influence me, whether to start more modestly or even to start with a product that consumers may be more familiar with, like the French baguette. I said no. What did I say when I was pushed to embark on the gluten-free trend or to create 1,001 niche products? No. When I was invited to limit myself to the production capabilities we had and first tackle the local market? No. So, when takeover bids for the company came, I also said no because I firmly believe that a game-changer must also be free. I have never made any compromise on the quality of the Boulart operations, products and services. This is what private ownership allows me to do. Freedom is important to me.”