The staff of life

It is not uncommon in these diet-conscious days to hear someone say, "I don't eat bread/potatoes/etc". The old belief that bread is the staff of life seems to have gone out of the baker's window. In biblical language, staff means support or prop, for centuries, a daily truth at the table.

Spain used to run on bread. A meal without a barra on the table was incomplete, almost incorrect. Bread soaked up olive oil, rescued sauces and carried jamón in bocadillos. The first item to arrive at any restaurant table was always the breadbasket.

Since the 1960s, Spaniards have gone from individually eating over 100 kilos of bread annually to barely 20 kilos. The causes are less dramatic than the result. First came the scare stories: bread equals weight gain. Even though bread is low in fat, many people now avoid it entirely. Add on the fashionable over-awareness of gluten, even among people with no intolerance.

Half of Spain's traditional neighbourhood bakeries have disappeared since 2000. Bread sales are made via supermarkets and petrol stations, where factory loaves dominate. Bread isn't dying -it's mutating. As quantity collapses, quality is at a premium: sourdoughs, slow fermentation, whole grains and regional styles are finding new addicts, especially expats and younger food-literate Spaniards. Bread is no longer cheap background noise; it's become a deliberate pleasure.

If Spain's bread culture is to survive, it won't be through habit. It will be through choice -and the local baker who still knows what flour, time and patience can deliver.