2. My name is Sarah Dennison, and welcome to my photo essay about real bread, featuring Sarah Richards of Seagull Bakery in Tramore, Co. Waterford. There is
something special about products that have been made with love and care, and Seagull Bakery’s produce definitely falls into this category. My family taught me the
importance of good, simple food - food that is nourishing and healthy for the body and mind. Real Bread fits the mould of healthy, nutritious and authentic fare. My
motivations for picking Seagull bakery were simple; to show the passion, dedication and hard work of a real bread campaigner in Ireland today.
Spending time with Sarah in her micro-bakery was a fantastic experience. It taught me lots of things, including how real bread is made. Not one machine was used
when I was in the bakery. Sarah’s hands are the main tool for the beautiful bread that was produced. Being in the bakery also taught me how running a business and
juggling other commitments is tough. Being around Sarah, even for such a small period of time has motivated me to appreciate the simpler things in life. One of her
business customer’s, Momo restaurant in Waterford city recently wrote a blog about Sarah titled ‘Superhero Sarah’. She is definitely that. Through the highs and lows,
this photo essay should portray a happy story about real bread, and how it can lead to a healthier and simpler way of life. One that also includes the community.
3. REAL: SOURDOUGH IS AN AUTHENTIC PRODUCT
A shelf of sourdough rising in their proofing baskets allows me a first glimpse into the meaning of real bread. “The dough in the proofing baskets have been there
overnight, this is just the beginning”, says Sarah. Making sourdough bread is a long process, and it all begins with flour and water, otherwise known as a starter. As the
starter ferments, sometimes for up to one week, it is necessary to keep feeding it with flour and water.
This is Seagull bakery, one of Waterford’s finest Artisan bakery’s, and a member of the Real Bread Ireland initiative. Nestled in the back garden of a country estate, the
chalet is occupied by owner and sole baker of Seagull Bakery, Tramore native, Sarah Richards. There is something special about the chalet, and before I entered, I
could see Sarah bustling about inside, bakers cap jauntily placed on her head. Upon opening the door, my senses got a shock. The smell – flour and gas. The sight – the
massive oven - the centrepiece of the operation, ready for that evening’s baking marathon. Everywhere you look, there are traces of flour to be found. The sound – a
combination of steam coming from the oven, and Sarah’s podcast playing acoustic versions of chart songs.
In Bord Bia’s ‘Keeping it Real’ report, people are now looking for products that are real, authentic and honest. They want to know where the products are coming
from, and what the products contain. Since the recession, the meaning of authenticity has changed, and this is very noticeable in the artisan food industry. One look
around the bakery will show you how busy Sarah is.
4. FOUR INGREDIENTS: WILD YEAST, WATER, FLOUR & SALT
Once the starter has reached a frothy stage, it is now ready to be used. Sarah skilfully takes the starter out of the proofing baskets, and lays them on the work
counter in an almost perfect symmetry. Blink, and you will miss the action, as Sarah shapes the dough. She is fast. Dough in hand, the sides are folded, and the
dough is flipped and rotated until happy with the outcome. It took Sarah approximately thirty seconds to shape one. “It’s all about practice”, Sarah says, as I looked
on in disbelief. My camera hardly able to keep up with the flurry of action.
I got a reality check - one of many that evening - this is not a hobby for Sarah, like it might be for many people. This is her livelihood. There is no time to luxuriate in
the pleasure of kneading and shaping dough, when she has an up and coming business to run. Sarah, a graduate of Ballymaloe Cookery School, Cork, is passionate
about real bread. Having trained under Cork based artisan baker, Declan Ryan of Arbutus Breads, Seagull bakery’s ethos is simple: deliver real bread to the people of
the South-East of Ireland.
According to Real Bread Ireland, real bread is made without any processing aids, or additives. Seagull Bakery’s bread contains just four core ingredients: wild yeast
ferment, flour, water and sea salt. Evidence shows that slow fermented bread is easier to digest, and bloating does not occur, unlike a mass produced sliced pan, for
example. Further evidence from Bord Bia shows that customisation in breads, such as Sourdough, is now required by consumers, in the ever changing market.
5. PEOPLE THINK IT IS A GLAMOROUS JOB, BUT IT’S NOT
After the dough has been shaped, Sarah quickly scores the bread to control the growth of the bread when baking, before putting large batches into the oven. Picking
up a hand-held watering spray gun - more commonly seen in a garden – Sarah then starts spraying the walls of the oven. Why? “To ensure a beautiful, shiny and
crunchy crust on the loaf”, Sarah tells me. Having never baked Sourdough before, this is a new experience.
Being in a tiny room, with a very hot oven is not easy. The door flings open several times due to the stormy evening, and it provides a welcoming relief. “People think
it is a glamorous job, but it’s not”. This is one of the first few things that Sarah said to me. Baking into the early hours of Friday morning, Sarah will not get much sleep
that night, or every Friday night, as she gets up at 5am to finish baking for the Saturday morning market. There are positives and negatives to every job.
Sarah’s passion for the values of the Real Bread campaign keep her motivated.
Real Bread Ireland, one year old in January 2016, is a voluntary network of craft bakers, and members include, Declan Ryan’s Arbutus Breads, and of course, Seagull
Bakery. Real Bread week runs from the 4th-10th of October every year, allowing the public to visit a bakery of their choice. This allows the artisan bakers to
demonstrate what they do best – real bread. The Irish campaign is quite small at the moment, but in time it will grow, just like their sister campaign, Real Bread UK.
Real Bread UK is part of the charity initiative, Sustain, an alliance for better food and farming advocates. Perhaps one day we might see Real Bread Ireland, and
perhaps, GIY (Grow It Yourself) uniting together.
6. FROM THE OVEN: REAL BREAD IS THE ORDER OF THE DAY
Sourdough takes around 45 minutes to bake. While in the oven, Sarah prepares more dough. Flip, rotate, shape and score. When the bread comes out, the
atmosphere almost changes in the tiny chalet. Instead of smelling gas and flour, your senses will now enjoy a freshly baked bread smell. The acoustic songs have
been forgotten about. Listen closely, and you will hear the sourdough sizzle and crackle, readjusting to life after a very hot oven. Real bread is the order of the day
here, and the baker is passionate about making sure it is perfect.
The bread is a thing of beauty, in fact, almost quite intimidating. Sarah, before becoming a chef, trained as an artist in Crawford College of Art in Cork. It is quite
symbolic that the chalet, now used for baking, used to be her art studio. The bread is her art, and she takes inspiration from destinations that are heavily involved in
the artisan industry. Having spent many years studying and living in Cork, the county holds very fond memories for the baker. None more so than walking around the
English Market – a historical landmark since 1788, and a definitive example of supporting small, local and artisan produce.
According to a recent Irish examiner article, a sliced pan can be made in just 100 minutes. Compare this to some 36 hours that a sourdough might need to rest, rise,
rest some more, shape and finally bake. This is not machine mass produced bread. My sister, who is also a baker, has just started making sourdough in her
workplace. This has made her extremely happy. She explained to me that sourdough is not a new or radical idea. There was no such thing as dried or fresh yeast
available years ago, with sourdough yeast being the only option. However, we are really only now coming to grips that natural is a much better option.
7. MARKETS PROVIDE AN ALTERNATIVE OPTION
Approximately 9am on a bright and blustery Saturday morning, and I was surprised, yet again. Expecting to see the now familiar face of Sarah setting up the market, it
was instead her husband, Conor, setting up shop. The smell of sea air woke me, and soon I was surrounded by last night’s intensive labour bake - flour blowing
everywhere, due to the strong sea winds. “The Tramore market is not really an official market”, Sarah said to me when she arrived, laden down with sweeter options
for the market. “You will see people selling from the boots of their cars.” €10 for 2 read the handmade sign propping against someone’s boot, selling fire kindling.
Markets definitely provide consumers with an alternative option.
“The market is my main source of income.” Sarah told me the previous night. Markets provide consumers with an alternative option for a reason – the quality of the
produce for sale. Conor hadn’t even finished setting up the market when people started approaching him to buy loaves of bread. People attract people. And the
crowd soon came. One man’s first time visit to Seagull Bakery’s stall was due to word-of-mouth, “I heard it was very good”. He left a happy customer.
Looking at Bord Bia’s list of approved markets in Ireland is an eye-opener. In Waterford county alone, there are seven. Including the ‘non-official’ Tramore market.
Seven is nothing compared to Cork and Dublin’s figures, 24 and 29 respectively. Country markets have been in operation for 60 years, and no doubt markets have
evolved a lot since then. They have become more commercial – look at Arbutus Breads in Cork who have a presence at four of Cork’s largest markets. The community
aspect will always be a major part of it though.
8. REAL BREAD: BRINGING THE COMMUNITY TOGETHER
With Seagull Bakery’s produce on display, it would be hard for Sarah not to be extremely proud of herself for producing six types of breads, on her own,
every single week. White, whole-meal, three seed, seaweed, flavoured rye and 100% rye. The options are generous, and there is something for everyone –
young and old. The idea of going to a market to meet with the actual baker is heaven. One three seed sourdough loaf, a cinnamon roll and lots of new found
knowledge later, I was certainly a happy customer.
A market allows an artisan producer to do several things. Firstly, it provides the producer with a marketing opportunity. There is no better advertisement
than a market stall, especially in a small country town, like Tramore. The market also allows direct contact with customers and the producer. Just like the
bread she produces, Sarah is authentic and real when dealing with the public. “I forgot to put in sea-salt”, she says to all customers before they buy orange
scones. The customers appreciate Sarah’s honesty and buy them anyway, despite the lack of salt. It is this kind of transparency customers like, and want
when they buy food.
Food journalist, Catherine Cleary recently wrote how supermarkets have so much power over consumers. There is no community in massive chain
supermarkets. Yes, they are convenient, and cheaper. But despite fully stocked shelves, they leave some people feeling empty. Seagull Bakery, driven by the
formidable Sarah Richards, is bringing the community back to basics again. It only takes one loaf of real bread to do that.
9. “The essence of all beautiful art,
all great art, is gratitude.”
Friedrich Nietzsche
