Novelty toilet roll cakes keep Finnish baker in business

Cakes that look exactly like rolls of toilet paper are displayed at Ronttosrouva bakery, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Helsinki, Finland, April 7, 2020. REUTERS/Attila Cser

A quick-thinking Helsinki bakery has saved itself from financial ruin due to the new coronavirus pandemic by creating a cake that looks like a toilet roll.

The dismayed staff at the Ronttosrouva bakery found all their orders cancelled last month, at the same time as panicked consumers began to hoard toilet roll. This sparked the idea of a toilet roll cake made of oat batter, passion fruit mousse and covered with white fondant.

The first five cakes sold within an hour, baker Uliana Timofeeva told Reuters, and the cake became a social media hit.

Saana Lampinen, owner of Ronttosrouva bakery, prepares a "toilet paper cake" that will look exactly like a roll of toilet paper, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Helsinki, Finland, April 7, 2020. REUTERS/Attila Cser

The bakery now has hundreds of orders and its owner Saana Lampinen has even been able to hire two extra people to her 9-member team.

"For us it's a game changer and I am relieved because I know all my employees are safe for months now," she said.

Saana Lampinen, owner of Ronttosrouva bakery, prepares "toilet paper cakes" that look exactly like rolls of toilet paper, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Helsinki, Finland, April 7, 2020. REUTERS/Attila Cser

(Reporting by Anne Kauranen and Attila Cser; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

Saana Lampinen, owner of Ronttosrouva bakery, is seen at her bakery which is selling "toilet paper cakes" that look exactly like rolls of toilet paper, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Helsinki, Finland, April 7, 2020. REUTERS/Attila Cser