Kansas State University (KSU) researchers have developed a new testing method to help millers assure wheat flour purity, according to a study published in Cereal Foods World, the official publication of the American Association of Cereal Chemists.
The test introduces molecular methods that focus on high, endosperm purity in flour extracted from wheat kernels. When completed, the work being done at the university will allow the miller to exclude inferior flour streams from the final product.
“We are helping the miller by measuring the endosperm purity for flour streams coming from each stage of the milling process,” said “This will allow the miller to optimize settings on equipment and make decisions to meet the baker's specifications for quality flour.”
The scientists analyzed 29 flour streams from a commercial wheat mill to determine the endosperm purity as it moves closer to becoming flour for bread or other products. “The result is an endosperm purity profile that enables the miller to determine the point at which a cutoff is required to maintain purity for the baker and, ultimately, the consumer,” said Mark Boatwright, a KSU doctoral candidate in biochemistry and molecular biophysics.
If millers are given greater ability to optimize equipment settings for the milling process, it will pay off with a higher yield of flour at the desired purity, according to the scientists.
