the one who makes Mercadona’s torrija bread

I firmly believe that we must deseasonalize desserts. Saint’s bones, bread of the dead and roscón de reyes all year round, please. And also torrijasof course. And something cyclical every Easter week In many homes it is the discussion about torrijas bread. Some of us prefer it from a bakery, but another resource is that they can sell it in a chain, being Mercadona. the undisputed queen in Spain. And if you are one of those who wonders who makes the products of FarmerIn the case of Mercadona’s torrija bread, there is a very simple answer.

A company from Alcalá de Henares.

Mercadona bread. The Panificadora de Alcalá website is simple. In it, we read that they have been making bread since 1955, but also a key fact: since 2006, they have been suppliers to Mercadona. Sometimes it is not easy to know who does what for the Valencian chain, but other times, the companies that create products under the umbrella of ‘ Hacendado’ do not hide. Take a walk around the catalog of products from the bakery is to look into the bread section of the supermarket.

And one of the products they sell is Mercadona’s torrija bread. For the Xataka jury, Mercadona’s is not the best torrija bread (there is the one from El Corte Inglés), but whether we like it more or less does not mean that the Madrid company feels comfortable playing in the league of white label stars.

Rent. According to the data of the ranking of elEconomista companies, Panificadora de Alcalá occupies fourth place nationally, only behind Bimbo Donuts, Monbake and another Bimbo spin-off. According to the financial newspaper, being a Mercadona customer is going well for him. Turnover of 53.2 million euros in 2021, 72.1 million in 2022 and 81.7 million in 2023. In 2024, Digital Economy point which created 90 new jobs and are investing 25 million euros in a new factory.

of gold. Panificadora de Alcalá is not the only company that sells bread to Juan Roig’s supermarket, nor is it an isolated case of success, precisely because of its status as a Mercadona supplier. A few months ago we echoed the Entrepinares case. the cheese maker boasts of being “the largest cheese manufacturer” and the key is, precisely, that for more than 20 years It has a key alliance with Mercadona, being its largest cheese supplier while working with its own brand in other supermarkets.

The cheese margin is seen to be large, here we are talking about a turnover that will skyrocket to more than 660 million euros in 2024, 8% more than that registered in the previous period. And there are many more cases, such as those of Profand (fish), Familia Martínez (the prepared food that they are pushing so much, to the amazement of those of us who still love to cook) or Oztuk (kebab and meat products), some of the suppliers that They are making money operating from the shadows.

Demanding. Here we might think that Mercadona already takes over the services that are going well and yes, it makes sense, but the manufacturers are clearly interested in allying themselves with the Roig chain. An example is Panamar, another bread company that, after becoming a supplier to Mercadona, grew 28%. But to keep up with a Mercadona that dominates with around 30% market shareone has to invest.

Panamar allocated 38 million euros to expand its factory in the Valencian town of Enguera, Grupo Huevos Guillén another 30 million investment in renovations and acquisition of farms, Schreiber (yogurts) 40 million in expansion and new lines and the aforementioned Entrepinares 53 million in a new factory. Casa Tarradellas, which has its own brand, but supplies products to Mercadona, invested 104 million euros in two new factories. And the Martinez Family prepared products… a whopping 150 million.

In total, it is estimated that in 2023 suppliers will invest 500 million euros in total to keep up with Mercadona. The number skyrocketed up to 1.7 billion in 2024.

Sometimes he takes out his wallet. As we said, it is evident that Mercadona’s supplier companies are interested in investing to expand and be able to keep up with a giant that not only relies on third parties, but sometimes takes its wallet out for a ride. Last year it bought Logifruita company that has been supplying reusable pallets and boxes for years, a move that could seem strange if we take into account that it already operated almost exclusively for Mercadona, but that is better explained when we know that the trade is rethinking the design of its supermarkets.

In the end, Mercadona’s commercial success relies heavily on that network of suppliers throughout the country, and the figures show that those who make up that network are not doing badly either. As Easter approaches, it will be Panificadora de Alcalá that will surely have an increase in bills to prepare some torrijitas at home.

As much as the owner of Mercadona don’t seem to like it May we continue doing things at home.

Images | RafaxFlikr (Informative Board)

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