Where Does Trader Joe's Get Its Fresh Baked Bread?

From the jalapeño cheddar pull apart bread to the aloha rolls, from the sliced seedy multigrain bread to the pain au lait chocolate chip — Trader Joe's stocks all kinds of bread in its stores. But where does it all come from? Trader Joe's stores tend to match its parking lots, packing in as many things and people as it possibly can into its small stores. While that does mean its customers get to save money in the long run, it also means there isn't much room leftover for an entire in-house bakery to bake its bread. That's why Trader Joe's chooses to outsource its fresh baked bread instead.

Just like the rest of Trader Joe's private label items, there are real bakeries behind its bread. Obviously, for bread to be truly fresh, it would have to come from somewhere nearby. So, the exact one you get will depend on the location you shop at.

Stores in Los Angeles stock loaves from a local bakery called Bread Lounge, located in Downtown LA. Bakeries can be as region specific as to change between the cities and the suburbs, with Bread Artisan Bakery in Santa Ana supplying breads for TJ stores throughout Long Beach and Orange County. Similarly, all of the artisan breads found inside stores across the Chicagoland area — including pretzel sticks, baguettes, and ciabatta loaves — are sourced from Butter Crumb Bakery, a wholesale bakery that regularly appears at local farmers markets.

Before it was discontinued, the San Francisco Style Sourdough from Trader Joe's was sourced from Bay Bread Company— and people are still desperate to figure out who is baking the sourdough in cities on the East Coast. While that's somehow remained under wraps, the babka found in the Brooklyn stores, interestingly, claims to be made by a brand called Brooklyn Babkas, which has ties to Schick's Bakery — a once iconic kosher bakery founded in the '40s. However, the brand is now owned by Japanese corporation, Taguchi & Co., which also supplies products under different names from its Bronx factory to stores like Whole Foods and Costco.

So, even if the bread you find at Trader Joe's claims to be from one place, it could be from somewhere completely different. But, if it's truly fresh, it can't be coming from far — which also explains why you might not find all the same varieties at every location.