Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Additional Information (Detail) - Distributor	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2016	Jan. 02, 2016
Fair Value Disclosures [Line Items]
Number of independent distributors	3,600	3,700
Maximum
Fair Value Disclosures [Line Items]
Financing period of distribution rights, years	10 years

Represents the approximate number of independent distributors for the company.

No definition available.

Name:	flo_NumberOfIndependentDistributors
Namespace Prefix:	flo_
Data Type:	xbrli:integerItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration