French baker invents a folding baguette – said to be perfect for cyclists

A bakery in a small town in France is making headlines all over the world after its owner devised a baguette that is described as perfect for cyclists and posted a picture of it to Facebook.

Named the Baguette du Motard – the Francophones among you will recognise that as a reference specifically to motorcyclists – the loaf is also pitched at those riding pedal-powered bikes.

It comes from the Boulangerie Le Darz in Landernau, which is in Brittany’s Finistere department, with owner Nicolas Le Darz saying he now sells 30 of the loaves each weekday, and as many as 50 on weekends.

What marketing wonks would call its USP (unique selling point) is that it is baked folded in half, and has the filling inside.

It’s therefore not just perfect to slip into a rucksack – if you’ve ever tried riding home with a full-size baguette sticking out of one, you’ll know they’re liable to break – but can also be dangled over the handlebars, should the fancy take you.

The folded baguette costs 1 euro — which some observe is 5 centimes more than a standard baguette — and is attracting attention around the globe, with a baker in Switzerland even reportedly asking what the secret is.

Now, none of us in the road.cc office is ever going to win the Great British Bake-Off — though editor Tony does like to make his own bread — but we don’t think you need to be Paul Hollywood to work out the artifice behind it.