French bakers claim world record for longest baguette
French bakers try not to crack the baguette when it comes out of a large rotating oven.
(CNN) — Baguettes are a notable component of France’s culinary scene.
Now, French bakers have taken the record for the longest baguette ever made.
At 140.53 meters long (461 feet), it trumps the previous Italian record of 132.62 meters (435 feet and 1 inch), held for almost five years, according to Guinness World Records.
The lengthy loaf was made in public on Sunday during the Suresnes Baguette Show at the Terrasse du Fécheray observation deck in France’s suburban western commune of Suresnes, near Paris.
A Guinness World Records (GWR) judge was there to approve the record, according to Reuters. CNN has contacted GWR.
A team of 18 bakers began preparing the dough at 3 a.m. local time before supervising the baking process from 5 a.m., according to a Suresnes news release. A mobile oven was specially designed for the occasion.
After the bread was baked, part of the baguette was cut up, spread with Nutella and shared with the public. Another part was given to local youth association Celije so that it could be distributed to the homeless that evening, according to the release.
“Suresnes is proud to witness this record for the world’s longest baguette, which celebrates a national symbol of our gastronomy and the craftsmen who perpetuate its know-how,” Suresnes mayor Guillaume Boudy said in the release.
“I congratulate the Suresnois bakers who took part in baking the baguette, and who maintain the traditions of sharing which are essential to the conviviality of our town,” Boudy added.
Dominique Anract, president of the French National Confederation of Boulangerie and Patisserie, said in the release that it “required some 10 hours of work,” adding: “A record for the longest handmade baguette requires true collective sportsmanship, and in this year of the Olympic Games, bravo to all our artisan bakers.”
The baguette – a long, thin, crusty loaf with shallow cuts – is one of the world’s most popular breads.
According to the French government’s official specifications, traditional French baguettes are made up of only white flour, water, yeast and salt, have five blade strokes and are approximately 60 centimeters (23.6 inches) long and 5 to 6 centimeters (2 to 2.4 inches) wide.
French baguettes were awarded a special protected status in 2022. The “artisanal know-how and culture of the baguette” was officially recognized on UNESCO’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
The attempt to beat the record for the world’s longest baguette was to give homage to that recognized heritage and culture, according to the Suresnes release.
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