Why do supermarkets put bread in those clear bags full of tiny holes?

rubadub

All I can think of is they are might be wrapped while hot and might otherwise sweat in a normal bag. If this is the case why not let them cool like any other bread which is in a proper sealed bag. My brother was commenting on some tesco "tiger bread", saying it did not last any length of time, then saw I had wrapped it up in a normal plastic bag after I got it.

Is there any other reason they do it, the only other one I could think of is letting the smell out. The conspiracy theorist in me would say they want it to go stale ASAP!

Magic Monkey

The holes are there presumably to let any moisture out to prevent the bread from spoiling. If it was a completely sealed bag, any light/heat in the supermarket, which can be warm places, could cause condensation to form on the inside of the bag, and mold would grow very quickly in the bread.

Crusty breads are best stored in paper, soft loaves in plastic. Seeing as Tiger Loaf is a soft-textured bread with a semi-crispy crust, it's probably a packaging compromise. Or it's to allow the bread's moisture level to equalise with the ambient humidity level, but either way I'd imagine it's simply to prevent rapid spoilage.