Hovis is venturing into the burgeoning wrapped sourdough category with the launch of two cobs.
The brand’s first-ever sourdough products – a White Sourdough Cob and Seeded Sourdough Cob – aim to tap into consumer demand for high-quality sourdough. They will launch in Tesco on 13 October followed by Morrisons a week later, before rolling out to other retailers with a rsp of £2.25.
The new products, which are manufactured at Hovis’ site in Mitcham in Surrey, have been in development for over a year and use Hovis’ signature starter dough. The dough is slowly fermented for at least 24 hours resulting in cobs that have a ‘thick golden crust and great flavour’, according to the brand. The cobs, it added, are baked in smaller batch sizes and are hand-finished.
Hovis noted that the white loaf contains just six ingredients – wheat flour, water, durum wheat semolina, wheat protein, sea salt, and fermented wheat flour – while the seeded iteration also has sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, toasted brown linseed, millet, and poppy seeds.
The wrapped sourdough market is booming in the UK. The category is now valued at more than £170m with an uplift of 56% seen over the past year [NIQ Scantrack 52 w/e 06/09/25]. This is fuelled by evolving consumer preferences and attitudes to food as sourdough evolves from an occasional weekend treat to something consumed across multiple occasions and throughout the week.
Just over 26% of households buy sourdough, Hovis noted, with 14.4% of total households buying branded wrapped sourdough products. A decent chunk of these sales come from Jason’s Sourdough which set out to disrupt and challenge the wrapped bread category with its ever-growing range.
Speaking with British Baker, Hovis’ chief marketing officer Mark Brown “Jason’s have done a great job”, but Hovis believes there is significant headroom for growth in the market yet, particularly with the category experiencing such “such phenomenal growth”. As a brand with 139 years of baking experience and heritage, Brown added that Hovis is well placed to meet consumer needs for ”genuine sourdough loaves with great taste and texture”.
“The launch presents a significant opportunity to make sourdough more accessible to a wider range of shoppers, helping retailers to boost premium bread sales with an exciting new offering from a trusted household name,” he said.
Hovis isn’t the only one looking to tap into sourdough’s success. Welsh bakery manufacturer Brace’s recently unveiled a sourdough brand called Ernest 100% which comprises a trio of loaves – White, Malted Brown, and Protein – as well as Crafted Rolls. Warburtons has also rolled a range called ‘Our Dough range which is marketed as made with sourdough (per the Sourdough Code of Practice as it contains yeast). The line-up features Wholegrain & Rye, White, and Seeds & Grains loaves.
Brown added that it was “business as usual” at Hovis as the Competition and Markets Authority begins its investigation into the proposed acquisition of the business by Associated British Foods (ABF). The move is designed to drive ‘significant cost synergies and efficiencies’ with the aim of creating a profitable bread business.
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