Why do bread companies add sugar to bread?

Question

I have a client who is on a sugar detox/diet. She can't eat any bread because all the bread companies added sugar. Why do bread companies add sugar to their breads?

Answer 1

Regardless of the ... awkward title of the question: Adding sugar instead of other sweeting agents to bread can have several reasons:

• flavour (caramelization)
• texture of the crumb (substituting sugar with another sweetening agent has a big impact on the chewiness of some chocolate cookies. I'm not sure whether the effect of adding sugar to bread has such a great effect)
• texture of the crust (caramelization)
• appearance (caramelization makes the crust look browner)
• "food" for the yeast that makes the dough rise (if yeast is used as a baking agent at all)

Or - in case that the bread is really, really sweet: shelf life.