Author
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Morris, Craig |
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Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter Publication Acceptance Date: 10/27/2014 Publication Date: 2/18/2016 Citation: Morris, C.F. 2016. Evaluation of wheat-grain quality attributes. In: Wrigley, C., Corke, H., Seetharaman, K., Faubion, J., editors. Encyclopedia of Food Grains. 2nd edition. Oxford, England:Academic Press. p. 251-256. Interpretive Summary: Because cereal grains (and the products derived from them) are biological entities and can vary dramatically, the ways in which different samples of the same cereal grain vary can have a profound impact on processing, nutrition, and consumer appeal. So, if it is important to analyze quality, what is “quality”? Quality in this context is “the degree or grade of excellence.” Quality may also be thought of as suitability. Consequently, to understand the analysis of cereal quality, one must appreciate the array of end uses of the various cereals. The main reason for assessing wheat flour quality is to predict its performance in commercial applications – either processing traits or end-product traits. Assessment of flour quality can be classified into two categories: end-product tests and component tests. An almost limitless number of foods are made from wheat. Wheat flour, bran, etc., are also important food ingredients. Therefore, wheat quality is defined by an almost infinite number of different food products that contain flour, starch, gluten, bran, whole and cracked grain, sugar, fats, oils, etc. Technical Abstract: Wheat is a leading source of food for humankind. Nearly all wheat is processed to varying degrees, and made into a limitless array of foods. As such, “quality” is a subjective assessment of suitability for a given process, food or use. Quality variation derives from compositional and physical attributes of grains. Methods to evaluate wheat-grain quality are designed to measure this functional variation. |
