Introducing Infusent® – Powered by Baker Perkins

Infusent® — Infusing Innovations — is the newest division of Baker Perkins, powered by 120+ years of engineering excellence and a desire to build customized solutions for the legitimate infused edibles maker.

Infusent® is an infused food equipment manufacturer aimed towards creating exceptional products, innovations, solutions, and scalable equipment to aid the medicated industry. Infusent® is powered by Baker Perkins, bringing 120+ years of engineering expertise, bespoke ingenuity, and selfless customer care backed by lifetime support. The magic happens in the Innovations Center, where the Infusent® design and engineering team works with clients to customize the tools for the task, test recipes, and co-create. Edibles makers large and small enjoy the same level of service and attention that the world’s top food manufacturers receive, without exception. Makers can trust reliable, hygienic equipment to create infused edible confections safely and deliciously — and help their companies grow. 

Infusent® means infuser in French and the machines do precisely that: they offer makers the ability to create and customize confections easily. Infusent® will bring all the solutions provided to big-box food production companies to smaller edibles makers to help them scale safely (and deliciously). Makers can create edibles from morning to night, with the peace of mind knowing expert advice is just a phone call away.

Empowering makers to build new recipes at the Infusent® Innovations Center (or their home labs) makes it easy to delight customers with enticing confections with the tap of a screen.

The future of edibles manufacturing is Infusent® — Infusing innovations, and Powered by Baker Perkins — building the tools for making the best edibles on the planet. 

Headquarters in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The Beginning

Our story begins with two North American inventors who emigrated to England in the 1800s, became fierce industry rivals, and ultimately forged a powerful partnership and a recipe for success. In a nutshell, Jacob Perkins and Joseph Baker had a thing for baking technology: Perkins pioneered a steam oven for baking bread. At the same time, Baker invented a wildly popular simple flour scoop sifter.

By the end of the 19th century, Joseph Baker & Sons Ltd was the most important manufacturer and exporter of food machinery in the UK. The Perkins Company built a wide range of bakery equipment for the home market. Although Baker and Perkins were engaged in the ultimate industry bake-off rivalry, they wisely put all their eggs in one basket to collaborate on automatic baking equipment to support the armies during World War One. They merged to become Baker Perkins in 1920 and were well-established names in the bakery, biscuit, confectionery, chocolate, and chemical machinery industries. Just as the companies combined, the Bakers bought a factory in Saginaw, Michigan. For over 60 years, it was the base for manufacturing food and chemical equipment in North America.

From Peterborough, England, to the North American HQ of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Baker Perkins evolved through new owners, new monikers, and over time, even independence. Two rival founders — Baker and Perkins — came together to cook up novel ways of thinking about food manufacturing and create the tools for the task. This solutions-based mindset, makers soul, and bold inventor spirit is baked right into the Baker Perkins DNA — and can always be found where it began — in the lab.

A History of Innovation is Baked Right In

Baker Perkins is known for its entrepreneurial culture that supports engineering and process technology and co-creation with customers, driven by a robust global distribution network. New molding and forming technology improves bread quality for bakers; workhorse equipment allows confectioners to craft a rainbow of new candies and lollipops; and pioneered technology expands the variety of convenient, tasty, and shelf-talking snacks and breakfast cereals that sit on kitchen tables around the world. Much of this new solution-based engineering begins in their Innovation Centers in the UK and the US. But the ultimate innovation challenge was just around the corner…

Invited to the Industry

Baker Perkins solved food manufacturing glitches with responsive equipment, yet their team of doers and inventors had a craving for new challenges, which meant they needed to scale. Baker Perkins had nibbled around the edges of the medicinal marketplace, had attended a few industry trade shows, and had several professional edibles makers interested in their confectionary machines. Baker Perkins did a brisk business in big box brands while the infused edibles industry was still finding its way, state-by-state, while under federal regulation. What was the upside for a 120+-year-old company that made candies, crackers, and cookies for the largest confectionary brands in the world to dip their spoon into this mercurial industry? 

Edibles makers had specific and time-sensitive needs, the requests continued to come in through the sales team, and the engineers at Baker Perkins looked at this need square in the eye and said, ‘we can help them.’ The prevailing theory was: ‘if we can make confectionary machines for the largest food manufacturers in the world, why can’t we make a smaller version to help this booming industry?’ 

Although Baker Perkins didn’t chase the medicated industry, the industry saw value in their machines and ‘invited them in.’ Baker Perkins realized that the marketplace was at an inflection point on the eve of legalization. Therefore, offering customized, leading-edge machines — to create infused edibles — was a way to solve a problem and be a true partner, opening up a golden path of profitability for everyone involved.

The beginnings of a delicious collaboration were cooking…

From Crackers and Cookies to Infused Edibles

Team Baker Perkins sought to bring their engineering and inventor know-how to solve the production issues of hard-working edibles makers struggling to keep up with demand. Hand batching is not scalable, and the margin for error and waste can be enormous. Edibles makers needed a solution, and Baker Perkins built the machine in response. Enter the multi-functional, transportable workhorse known as the Servo Form Mini, which created makers’ ease, efficiency, uniformity, and customization. Additionally, the Servo Form Mini allowed companies to meet distribution goals, lower production costs, and create a broader range of products. The inventors met an initial audience of early adopters, who experienced significant ‘before and after’ success stories to report after the Servo Form Mini became a part of their mix. Creating a division to address the needs (and speed) of the legitimate medicated market — with tools and solutions —was now on the table. 

Cooking Up the Next Batch of Solutions

Schenck Process Group knew an incredible group of people, processes, and ideas when they saw it. With a history of building, scaling, and mergers, they sought to bring Baker Perkins to new realms. Success depended on utilizing the knowledge, experience, and customer relationships of the Baker Perkins team to support future growth while remaining committed to existing facilities in Peterborough and Grand Rapids, Michigan.

At Schenck Process Group, it starts with the people, then strategic planning, then execution. Understanding how to shore up a talented team with resources to meet the needs of the infused edibles makers pre and post-legalization was the goal while continuing to serve traditional clients. But above all, understanding that it’s 120+ years of people and processes that matter, (otherwise it’s just steel, pistons, flour, sugar, and water) that made this particular union a true win-win. Being able to bring health and wellness into the mix became a key driver.

Next up was an integration plan: mapping out new paths with the combined forces of the Baker Perkins team and the Shenck Process Group to form a novel approach to edibles manufacturing: Infusent® — Powered by Baker Perkins. 

Introducing Infusent® – Powered by Baker Perkins

Infusent® — Infusing Innovations — is the newest division of Baker Perkins* powered by 120+ years of engineering excellence and a desire to build customized solutions for the legitimate infused edible maker.

Infusent® is built with integrity and innovation, and dedicated to serving legitimate infused edible makers, to create delicious, hygienic products around the clock.

The future of edibles manufacturing is Infusent® — Infusing innovations, and Powered by Baker Perkins — building the tools for making the best edibles on the planet.