Saying no to sourfaux since 2015

The Real Bread Campaign invites everyone worldwide to join the 10^th anniversary of slamming sourfaux to highlight the corporate hijack of the word sourdough in promoting products manufactured by other means.

Campaign coordinator Chris Young, who coined the word sourfaux for Sourdough September in 2015, said: “Over decades in the UK, and countless generations elsewhere, custodians of the craft have built up the reputation of sourdough as offering a route to better-bred bread. Many people simply enjoy eating well-made genuine sourdough bread, with some also reporting they benefit from digestive or other health reasons.”

He went on to say: “companies that once shunned sourdough, now see the marketing value of the word and want a slice of the action. Not all want to invest in the necessary skills, knowledge and time, though. Some choose to profit from selling – and even charge a premium for – products that are sourdough in name alone. We call that sourfaux and believe people are at risk of being ripped off.”

Showing support

Balcony Shirts is producing limited edition ‘Say no to sourfaux’ t-shirts, aprons and mugs and doughnating a slice of each sale to Sustain, the charity that runs the Campaign.

A free sheet of stickers is available to download a free sticker sheet to print from the Campaign website.

Annual international celebration

Every year since 2013, the Real Bread Campaign’s #SourdoughSeptember has united genuine sourdough lovers around the globe in celebration of the oldest way of leavening bread. This edition will build upon the baker’s dozen years of awareness (and dough) raising, encouraging people to make their own sourdough bread, buy it from a local, independent Real Bread bakery, and to support the Campaign’s charitable work.

Start(er) them young

People who have, or work with, children can gain information and inspiration from:

• The free Dough Monsters care guide
• Bake Your Lawn, the grow-a-loaf guidebook

What’s on where?

The Campaign invites (micro)bakeries, mills, bakery / cookery schools, eateries, schools, care homes, small shops, community groups and everyone else to get involved in whatever ways work for them. The most common activities include sourdough:

• bread making workshops
• starter giveaways
• pizza evenings

Organisers are invited to add details of their activities to the Real Bread events calendar, though many simply announce them on social media.

The Campaign also renews its encouragement of bakeries to set up Real Bread for All schemes.

Raising dough

As well as collections run by some activity organisers, ways that people can help to enable the food and farming charity Sustain to keep running the Real Bread Campaign include:

• joining as a Campaign supporter
• the Campaign’s three books
• more Real Bread gifts
• making a doughnation
• leaving a legacy

Sourdough sharing

Post photos and notes about what you get up to with the #SourdoughSeptember tag and follow @RealBreadCampaign on Instagram, Facebook and Threads, and @realbreadcampaign.bsky.social on Blue Sky.

Nothing wrong with yeast

To be clear, the Campaign has no issues with people making Real Bread using baker's yeast. The problem is when a company tries to pass it of as sourdough.