Asia is a globally important source of grain supply and demand, and its demand for grain is continuing to grow. Ensuring that Asian food producers have access to sufficient quantities and qualities of local and imported grains at affordable prices is a major challenge for many Asian governments. To underpin food security, many Asian countries engage in grain trade. The principal grain grown in Australia is wheat, and the majority of Australian wheat is exported to Asia. Two-row spring-type barley is another main grain produced in Australia and is also sold principally in Asia. China is the single most important export market for Australian malting barley. Unfortunately, in May 2020 China announced the introduction of an effective 80% tariff on all Australian barley imported into China, which has halted the barley trade between Australia and China. Australian malting barley is flowing to other Asian markets but will need to enter large feed barley markets such as Saudi Arabia to remain sustainable. Because farmers will receive lower prices for feed barley, the future of barley production in Australia is uncertain, as barley farmers are likely to switch to other more profitable crops, such as wheat and canola. Asia is a globally important source of grain supply and demand, and its demand for grain continues to grow for two key reasons. First, the region’s population continues to increase. Second, Asia’s per capita wealth continues to rise, causing an increase in direct and indirect consumption of grains. Few Asian countries export much grain (Fig. 1). The exceptions are Thailand and Vietnam, which are major exporters of rice. Most Asian countries need to satisfy their domestic demand for grain via local production and some combination of a drawdown of local stocks and importation of grain (8). China is unique in producing huge volumes of grains (corn, rice, wheat, and soybeans), while also maintaining large stocks of several grains: wheat and corn and, to a lesser extent, soybeans. China also imports large volumes of feed grains, principally soybeans and some coarse grains (corn and barley). Most other Asian countries produce relatively small volumes of grain, apart from rice and corn, maintain modest reserves of grain, and principally rely on grain imports, especially feed grains. As Asians become wealthier, their indirect consumption of grains is increasing as their diets contain more meat and dairy products (1,7), the production of which often depends on local and imported feed grains. In addition, direct consumption of grains is increasing as millions are lifted out of poverty and inadequate nutrition, while others are shifting away from almost exclusively rice-centric diets to diets that include wheatbased noodles, breads, and biscuits (cookies) and cakes (2,4) or who drink malt-based beers and, therefore, indirectly consume barley (5). Ensuring that Asian food producers have access to sufficient quantities and qualities of local and imported grains at affordable prices is a major challenge for many Asian governments. Food security and affordability are principal concerns for many governments, as food purchases remain a major proportion of household expenditures. For example, in Laos and Vietnam close to half of all household expenditures are allocated to the purchase of food (6). To underpin food security, many Asian countries engage in grain trade. Hence, grain trade policies are important economic and political issues. Yet, these trade policies are often politically sensitive issues as they need to be formed against the backdrop of rural populations in Asia, which are an important proportion of each country’s population, and Asian grain farmers who are often small-scale operators in need of government support. An additional overlay for China is the use of its market size to further its geopolitical role. Australia’s Grain Trade Landscape in Asia The principal grain grown in Australia is wheat. Australia produces, on average, about 25 Mt of wheat each year, accounting for 3.5% of annual global production. The Australian wheat industry is export oriented, shipping about 65–75% of the nation’s total production to more than 50 countries. However, the majority of Australian wheat is exported to Asia, which accounts for 70–80% of Australia’s exports. The main Asian export markets for Australian wheat are Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, China, South Korea, and Japan (Table I). Over much of the last decade Indonesia was a dominant export market for Australian wheat (3). For example, in 2017, 5.2 Mt of wheat was exported from Australia to Indonesia. However, in 2018, as drought gripped eastern Australia, only 2.2 Mt was exported to Indonesia, and as the drought continued into 2019, even less wheat was exported to Indonesia. Australia’s share of the Indonesian wheat market fell from 70% to less than 10%. As Australian wheat became scarcer and more expensive, Indonesian flour millers turned to other cheaper sources, such as Ukraine and Argentina. Australian wheat that ordinarily would have shipped to Indonesia instead fueled Australia’s domestic food and feed wheat markets, such that Australia’s market share in Indonesia collapsed. From July 2019 to January 2020, Australia’s market share of wheat imports in Indonesia was only 8%. Indonesian flour millers and noodle manufacturers learned how to produce instant noodles with higher proportions of wheat from cheaper sources, thereby reducing their dependence on Australian wheat. Russia and Ukraine are now major exporters to Indonesia, which is the world’s second largest importer of wheat. The Changing Trade Landscape in Asian Grain Markets: An Australian Perspective Ross Kingwell1 University of Western Australia and Australian Export Grains Innovation Centre, Perth, WA, Australia 1 E-mail: ross.kingwell@aegic.org.au https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-65-5-0051 © 2020 Cereals & Grains Association CEREAL FOODS WORLD, SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2020, VOL. 65, NO. 5 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-65-5-0051 CEREAL FOODS WORLD, SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2020, VOL. 65, NO. 5 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-65-5-0051 The other main grain produced in Australia that also is principally sold in Asia is two-row spring-type barley. Australia’s annual average production of barley is about 7.5 Mt. Australia produces around 2.5 Mt of malting barley and 4.5 Mt of feed barley. Globally, Australia is a major exporter of barley, representing more than 40% of the world’s malting barley trade and 20% of the feed barley trade. China is the single most important export market for Australian barley. From 2014 to 2017 China imported an average of 4.3 Mt per annum from Australia, or around 70% of all Australian barley exports. A minor grain exported to Asia from Australia is oats. About 20% of Australia’s annual production (~1.5 Mt) of oats is exported to international markets, principally China and Japan. In Asia there is increasing consumer interest in the beneficial health properties of oats and its food products, such as oat noodles, oat milk, and oat rice. Australia’s Asian Trade Agreements The following are Australia’s free trade agreements with Asian countries (listed with the entry-into-force date): • Singapore-Australia (SAFTA) – July 28, 2003 • Thailand-Australia (TAFTA) – January 1, 2005 • ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)Australia-New Zealand (AANZFTA) – January 1, 2010 for eight countries: Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Myanmar (Burma), Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Vietnam. For Thailand: March 12, 2010. For Laos: January 1, 2011. For Cambodia: January 4, 2011. For Indonesia: January 10, 2012 • Malaysia-Australia (MAFTA) – January 1, 2013 • Korea-Australia (KAFTA) – December 12, 2014 • Japan-Australia (JAEPA) – January 15, 2015 • China-Australia (ChAFTA) – December 20, 2015 • Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for TransPacific Partnership (CPTPP) – December 30, 2018 • Australia-Hong Kong (A-HKFTA) – January 17, 2020 • Indonesia-Australia Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IA-CEPA) – February 10, 2020 The most recently ratified agreement, IA-CEPA, has several potential benefits for Australia’s grains industry. In 2018–2019, the total two-way trade in goods and services between Australia and Indonesia was worth A$17.8 billion, making Indonesia Fig. 1. Export and import of principal grains by Asian countries (average 2017/2018 to 2019/2020). Source: USDA data (8). Note, rice data for Southeast (SE) Asia only includes Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, and Myanmar (Burma).
There are many forms of contamination that can affect grain quality from the farm through transportation, storage, and processing of grains before they are ready for consumption as food or feed. Of these forms of contamination, biological contamination can be a significant threat to human and animal health when contaminated grain is processed into food or feed. Biological contamination encompasses allergens, mycotoxins, pests, and microbes.
Extrusion processing has been utilized for creating textured substrates for many years. Early extrusion systems relied on simple ingredients and equipment, but the demand for high-quality consumer goods has increased the range of raw materials that can be used, and the complexity of extrusion processes has changed dramatically. Today, there are three primary extrusion-based methods utilized for production of texturized proteins: dry extrusion, wet extrusion, and thermal extrusion. This article examines the basic principles of each process, outlines differences in the processes used in creating a textured substrate, and describes the limitations and challenges of each method. Extrusion is a widely accepted process for manufacturing protein-based foodstuffs that are used in a variety of textured convenience foods. Extrusion has been used for many years to produce texturized proteins, including spun soy protein isolates and extruded meat analogs, while other technologies, such as 3D printing of proteins, have only recently been introduced. Commercial feasibility has supported the development of three extrusion-based methods for production of texturized proteins: dry extrusion, wet extrusion, and thermal extrusion. The development of each technology has been driven by consumer needs and demands for product texture, nutrition, and quality. Extrusion allows a wide range of protein sources to be continuously cooked using a combination of mechanical and thermal energy. The macromolecules in proteinaceous ingredients lose their native, organized structure and form a continuous, viscoelastic mass. As they pass through the extruder barrel and die, they are aligned in the direction of flow. This realignment exposes bonding sites that lead to cross-linking and a reformed, expandable structure (2) that is responsible for the chewy, meatlike texture in plant-based alternatives (Figs. 1 and 2). In addition to texturizing and restructuring plant proteins, the extrusion cooking process performs several other important functions, including • Denaturing protein—Proteins are effectively denatured during the moist, thermal process of extrusion. Denaturation of protein “lowers solubility, renders it digestible while destroying the biological activity of enzymes and toxic proteins” (3). • Deactivating residual heat-labile growth inhibitors— Growth inhibitors are inherent in some vegetable proteins and can exert harmful physiological effects on humans or animals, as revealed by growth and metabolism studies. By deactivating these growth inhibitors, the harmful physiological effects can be dramatically reduced or eliminated altogether. • Controlling raw or bitter flavors—Many undesirable raw or bitter flavors are volatile and are eliminated through the extrusion and decompression of the protein at the extruder die. The use of preconditioning and atmospheric venting devices in the design of an extrusion system also assists in volatilization and removal of off-flavors. • Providing a homogeneous, irreversible, bonded dispersion of all micro-ingredients throughout a protein matrix—Dispersion not only ensures uniformity of all ingredients, such as dyes, throughout the product, but also provides a means whereby minor ingredients can be intimately associated with potential reaction sites, promoting cross-linking or other desirable chemical and physical modifications. Extrusion Techniques for Meat Analogues Brian Plattner Wenger Manufacturing, Sabetha, KS, U.S.A. https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-65-4-0043 © 2020 Cereals & Grains Association CEREAL FOODS WORLD, JULY-AUGUST 2020, VOL. 65, NO. 4 / DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/CFW-65-4-0043 Fig. 1. Raw protein globules. Fig. 2. Texturized and aligned protein. • Shaping and sizing of the final extruded product—Shaping and sizing of final products creates textured vegetable protein products that are convenient and available in transportable portions for packaging in retail or institutional marketplaces.
ABSTRACT Rice is grown over much of the world and provides more calories directly to human beings than any other cereal. Rice production is concentrated in Asia (~90% of total world production), with China and India being the largest single national producers and consumers of rice. Because of its critical role in human nutrition, more rice must be produced annually to provide food for a growing population. Worldwide rice yields increased more than threefold between 1960 and 2019. Much of this production is due to greater yield per hectare of land area rather than increasing land area used in rice production. The increase in yield has been facilitated by genetic improvement of rice varieties through breeding for changing production conditions and improved cropping practices. The development of hybrid rice has also allowed large increases in rice productivity to be achieved. The rice plant is harvested as the rough rice grain, or paddy, which contains approximately 20% husk, 10% bran, and 70% milled rice. The unbroken kernel of rice is the main product of the rice paddy that is consumed by humans. These unbroken (or mostly unbroken) kernels, or head rice, are the largest determinant of rice quality and the primary source of value from the crop. The milled rice kernels or heads are primarily composed of starch, which is mostly amylopectin, and a smaller amount of protein. Critical quality components of the milled rice kernel include percent chalk, protein content, amylose content, cooking properties, and gelatinization characteristics. Optimal timing of harvesting the rice paddy allows head rice yields to be optimized. Since rice is dried after harvest to a safe moisture content for storage, drying practices and conditions must also be optimized to achieve optimal head rice yields. Harvest timing, drying conditions, and storage practices are critical to practical productivity improvements in rice production. Rice is milled after storage, and milling factors dramatically influence overall rice quality. Most rice is consumed directly as milled rice, but many important products, including noodles, puffed rice, flour, and beer, also have critical quality requirements. In the last 60 years, critical improvements in breeding, production practices, harvesting, drying, storage, and milling have enabled a continual flow of more, higher quality rice for the growing global population.
Whole grains and their products have existed or been introduced worldwide, but there are still some challenges facing researchers and food manufacturers. This article focuses on the current development status of whole grains and the processing and sensory challenges to increasing whole grain food consumption in China. Whole grain foods have been consumed in China for centuries; however, refined grain products became more popular with advances in grinding technology. In recent years, a decline in people's health has reminded consumers that whole grain foods are excellent alternatives in a healthy diet. The market share of whole grain foods started to increase at a very fast pace in China at the beginning of the 21st century. Processing technology is a key factor influencing the expansion of whole grain products. Due to the darker color and larger particle size of bran and active enzymes in the germ, whole grain foods usually present an undesirable appearance, mouthfeel, and shelf life. Grinding of the entire kernel, sprouting, fermentation, and extrusion techniques have shown great benefits in improving the texture and sensory characteristics of whole grain foods. Because of nutrient loss during processing, a balance between desirable flavor and nutritional value should be considered for future innovations in whole grain processing technology.
