For my book, Swiss Bread (English) / Brot Huusgmacht (German) / Pains Maison (French), I describe some of the flour types found in Switzerland. For people living outside of Switzerland, please find more detailed profiles of these flours below to help you find equivalent or similar flours in your home country. Flour types can vary, so you may need to experiment to figure out which one and what quantity of liquid works best for the recipes in my book.
Swiss Wheat Flours in German, French & Italian
| English | German | French | Italian |
| white flour (type 400) | weissmehl (type 405) | farine fleur farine blanche (T45) | farina bianca |
| white flour (type 550) | weissmehl (type 550) | farine blanche (T55) | farina bianca |
| half-white flour (type 720) | halbweissmehl (type 812) | farine mi-blanche (T65/80)* | farina semiblanca |
| dark flour (type 1100) | ruchmehl (type 1050 type 1200) | farine bise (T110) | farina bigia |
| whole wheat flour (type 1900) | vollkornmehl | farine complète farine intégrale (T150) | farina integrale |
*In France, please note that flour type T80 is called “Farine bise,” even though it more closely resembles the flour known as “Farine mi-blanche” in Switzerland.
Swiss Wheat Flours – Characteristics
| English | Degree of grinding (extraction rate) | Minimum Protein content |
| white flour (type 400) | 0-30% | 11.5% |
| white flour (type 550) | 0-65% | 12.0% |
| half-white flour (type 720) | 30-75% | 12.5% |
| dark flour (type 1100) | 30-85% | 13.0% |
| whole wheat flour (type 1900) | 98-100% | 14.0% |
American vs. Swiss Wheat Flours
| Swiss flour | American flour suggestion |
| white flour (type 400) | all-purpose flour OR bread flour |
| white flour (type 550) | all-purpose flour OR bread flour |
| half-white flour (type 720) | white whole wheat flour |
| dark flour (type 1100) | white whole wheat flour* (you may need to reduce the amount of liquid in the recipe by about 25 ml) |
| whole wheat flour (type 1900) | whole wheat flour |
*You could also try a mixture of all-purpose or bread flour with whole wheat flour, possibly without having to make any changes to the amount of liquid.
UK vs. Swiss Wheat Flours
| Swiss flour | UK flour suggestion |
| white flour (type 400) | strong white bread flour |
| white flour (type 550) | strong white bread flour |
| half-white flour (type 720) | strong brown bread flour (you may need to increase the amount of liquid in the recipe by about 25 ml) |
| dark flour (type 1100) | strong brown bread flour |
| whole wheat flour (type 1900) | wholemeal flour |
References:
- “C’est quoi cette farine?,” Bon à Savoir, April 2017.
- Ducommun, Olivier, Tableau des farines de froment, Lausanne: La Mie, 2018
- “Mehltypen und Bezeichnung,” Einfach Backen, Marcel Paa, 2020.
- Richemont Craft School. Swiss Bakery. Sarnen: Abacherli Druck AG, 2008.
- “Welches Mehl wofür…?,” Schweizer Brot, April 2018.
If you have questions about Swiss flour or if you have suggestions, please leave a comment below or send me an email. Many thanks!
Updated: August 2, 2021.
