Progress 10/01/05 to 09/30/08
Outputs
OUTPUTS: The long-term goal of this project was to develop a more convenient and nutritious rice product that will have wide appeal in both the U.S. and in developing nations. To achieve this goal, we developed a process for manufacturing VitaRice, a novel, low cost, partially cooked, nutritionally fortified rice. VitaRice is manufactured from rice flour prepared from broken rice kernels using extrusion. Rice flour was mixed in a small rotary mixer with a series of nutrient premixes containing retinyl palmitate, ascorbic acid, zinc oxide, and various forms of iron (ferrous sulfate, electrolytic iron, soluble ferric pyrophosphate, or micronized ferric pyrophosphate). The fortified flour was mixed with water and fed into a twin-screw extruder fitted with dyes in the shape of rice kernels, and the extruded rice kernels were dried in a forced air drier. Samples of the fortified flour and dried extruded kernels were analyzed for the four nutrients and sensory analyses were conducted on cooked samples. Retention of retinyl palmitate was approximately 50% in the extruded samples. Retention of ascorbic acid varied from about 50% to more than 80% and was higher in samples fortified with electrolytic iron than with ferrous sulfate or ferric pyrophosphate, suggesting that ionic iron catalyzed ascorbic acid destruction. Sensory tests with human taste panels revealed that the texture and flavor of the extruded rice was comparable to commercial rice. Color Lab values obtained with a Macbeth ColorEye spectrophotometer revealed a darkening in samples fortified with iron (lower L values in fortified samples). This darkening was minor in samples fortified with electrolytic iron but substantial in samples fortified with ferrous sulfate and ferric pyrophosphate. We conclude that electrolytic iron (or other elemental iron forms) is suitable for fortifying extruded rice but that iron salts and chelates are not acceptable for this application because they cause unacceptable darkening of the product. We chose to fortify with iron, zinc, and vitamin A because deficiencies of these nutrients are prevalent in many populations around the world. We added vitamin C because it is a well known enhancer of iron absorption. PARTICIPANTS: Dr. G. Hemalatha, Associate Professor from the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in India was a visiting professor in the Department of Food Science at Cornell University during the fall, 2008 semester. She spent approximately 50% of her time working on this project while at Cornell. TARGET AUDIENCES: Not relevant to this project. PROJECT MODIFICATIONS: Not relevant to this project.
Impacts
We have successfully developed a process for producing nutritionally fortified, quick cooking rice from broken rice kernels. The product can be fortified with a variety of nutrients at specified concentrations and therefore is a promising vehicle for delivering needed micronutrients to target populations. We are currently seeking funding to conduct an efficacy trail of this product with elementary school students in India.
Publications
- Liu, Yankai. 2008. Further developments in extruded fortified rice processing. Master of Professional Studies Thesis. Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.
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Progress 10/01/06 to 09/30/07
Outputs
The long-term goal of this project is to develop a more convenient and nutritious rice product that will have wide appeal in both the U.S. and in developing nations. To achieve this goal, we developed a process for manufacturing VitaRice, a novel, low cost, partially cooked, nutritionally fortified rice. VitaRice is manufactured from rice flour prepared from broken rice kernels using extrusion. This year, we refined the process to improve the quality of the VitaRice and to enhance nutrient retention. Rice flour was mixed in a small rotary mixer with a nutrient premix containing retinol palmitate, ascorbic acid, electrolytic iron powder, and zinc oxide. The fortified flour was mixed with water and fed into a twin-screw extruder fitted with dyes in the shape of rice kernels, and the extruded rice kernels were dried in a forced air drier. Samples of the fortified flour and dried extruded kernels were analyzed for the four nutrients. Compared with the concentration in the
fortified flour prior to extrusion, retinol palmitate retention was 46%, ascorbic acid retention was 60% and retention rates for electrolytic iron and zinc oxide ranged from 84 to 100%. Our results demonstrate that fortification of extruded rice is feasible and that nutrient losses, while significant, are comparable to losses in many food processing operations.
Impacts
This year, we were successful in our objective to improve the quality of the final VitaRice product. It closely resembles commercially available polished rice in appearance and texture. We were able to achieve a slight improvement in vitamin retention in the VitaRice but it is still only 46% for retinol palmitate and 60% for ascorbic acid. We also produced sufficient quantities of VitaRice to conduct a sensory evaluation trail to evaluate consumer acceptance of the product. This trial is planned for April, 2008.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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Progress 01/01/06 to 12/31/06
Outputs
The long-term goal of this project is to develop a more convenient and more nutritious rice product that will have wide appeal in both the U.S. and in developing nations. To achieve this goal, we developed a process for manufacturing VitaRice, a novel, low cost, partially cooked, nutritionally fortified rice. Several prototypes of VitaRice were manufactured in the Cornell University Pilot Plant. Rice flour made from broken rice kernels was mixed with a vitamin-mineral premix containing ascorbic acid, retinol palmitate, hydrogen reduced iron powder, and zinc oxide. Water was added to raise the moisture content to 38 percent and the mixture was extruded using a Wenger twin screw extruder configured with a rice kernel-shaped dye. The extruded kernels were dried, analyzed for nutrient retention, and evaluated by a 100-member sensory panel. Retention of the vitamins was approximately 50 percent while retention of the iron and zinc was greater than 80 percent. For the
sensory evaluation, two extruded samples of rice (fortified and unfortified extruded rice), and two commercial samples of enriched rice (long-grain white rice) were cooked in rice cookers and presented to consumer panelists. Results suggested greater acceptability by the consumer panel for commercial rice samples. The most sizable difference was seen in the appearance attributes, followed by overall acceptance, and aroma. The addition of vitamins and minerals to extruded rice did not appear to have a large effect on sensory acceptability, with the exception of several appearance attributes. Overall, panelists rated the VitaRice samples as acceptable. Our results suggest that VitaRice has great promise as a nutritionally enhanced, low cost rice product that consumers will embrace.
Impacts
Micronutrient malnutrition is widespread among rice eating populations in many countries around the world. For example, more than 70 percent of children under 5 in India are iron deficient and nearly 60 percent suffer from sub-clinical vitamin A deficiency. Rice is a major food staple for these populations and therefore fortification of rice with micronutrients that are lacking has the potential to improve nutritional status. We have developed a novel technology for converting broken rice kernels into nutrient fortified intact kernels that closely resemble whole kernels of polished rice. The process is cost effective because the market value of broken rice kernels is about 30 percent lower than the market value of intact kernels.
Publications
- No publications reported this period
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