Pingle 500 Ton Per Day Flour Mill

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Flour, though stable, demands high-quality control to ensure both success and safety, starting from the wheat receiving process up to the flour dispatch.

Sarah Krayem

Technical Director National Flour Mills S.A.R.L (Part of Essa Al-Ghurair Investment)

The milling industry sees fierce competition, with companies enhancing their quality assurance divisions to elevate their final product and reliably meet customer expectations, securing a prominent position in the marketplace.

When considering any product, quality invariably surfaces as a primary attribute. As quality fundamentally shapes a product’s presence and market positioning, it becomes vitally important, especially when human lives are influenced by its safety aspects. Wheat flour, as a foundational staple food, demands utmost diligence regarding its quality. The enhanced consumer awareness prompts manufacturers to maintain transparency and deliver the superior quality that customers eagerly anticipate. For this discourse, we will categorize flour quality into three essential components known as the SSS: Safe, Sustainable, & Standard.

SAFETY

We prioritize the attribute of 'Safe', as compromise is not an option here.

While flour is stable, its production process carries weighty implications for safety from the outset, from wheat receiving to flour dispatch.

STANDARD

As a fundamental ingredient, wheat flour must adhere to specific regulations. Consequently, wheat flour should align with three vital standards: regulatory, consumer, and producer.

Regulatory standards involve governmental criteria, consumer-oriented standards revolve around baking properties, and producer standards concern yield metrics. In particular, we observe Lebanese standards for wheat and its flour while adapting to new regulatory changes. National Flour Mills pioneered the integration of a food safety management system in Lebanon, earning ISO certification, which we continuously strive to enhance annually.

Furthermore, meeting these standards means aligning with customer specifications. Our diverse products undergo stringent quality assessments, ensuring we consistently deliver the quality our clients demand—testing aspects like Alveograph W, baking strength, protein and ash contents, retrogradation, and shelf-life conditions.

Producer standards vary based on operational processes, the machinery employed, desired profit margins, and overall consistency.

SUSTAINABILITY

Strategically developed sustainable practices foster enduring relationships with our clients. This characteristic varies among millers and is pivotal in maintaining a competitive edge.

At National Flour Mills, we prioritize customer engagement, collaborating closely to meet their unique requirements. This synergy is crucial to maintaining consistent product quality, necessitating coordination across milling and quality control departments. Bakers require tailored solutions based on their production processes, logistics, and final product specifications, presenting challenges that can be resolved through the following approaches:

• Acquiring comprehensive knowledge about raw materials,
• Monitoring production processes through flour analysis,
• Interpreting various quality data,
• Implementing scientific methods and tools for product sustainability.

Simultaneously, customers must consider mill constraints for a mutually beneficial and sustainable outcome, making effective communication crucial for building trust and strengthening relationships.

Quality control should be at the core of milling operations, facilitating communication among producers, regulators, and clients.

In an industry filled with competition, a distinct profile is essential for attaining a reigning market position. Companies investing in quality departments bolster their final product's caliber, meeting and often surpassing customer expectations.

Moreover, the quality control division at NFM is vital for research and development, propelling the company to a pioneering stature in milling. In particular, our QC team collaborates with technology providers like Bühler AG to refine the world's leading milling technology: the Combi PesaMill®, which offers flexibility in producing three flour varieties—Atta whole wheat flour, type 850, and baker's flour.

In this context, the quality control department proved instrumental in supporting Bühler with necessary analysis to evaluate product characteristics such as water absorption, starch damage, granularity, and moisture content. This cooperation allowed for fine-tuning mill operations to achieve target flour quality. Atta whole wheat flour, previously only produced through traditional Chakki stone mills, is now made at NFM via a hygienic, energy-efficient industrial process.

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To ensure that quality control meets the defined responsibilities and adds tangible value, persistent scientific approaches and well-equipped laboratories are indispensable. The optimal design of a flour mill lab relies on the company's vision, financial health, and investment potential.

Nevertheless, we can identify some critical quality characteristics alongside requisite equipment that are essential for a cutting-edge laboratory in milling.

MOISTURE

Quality control initiates when the wheat arrives at the mill. Visual inspections are necessary to ascertain the wheat’s safety and suitability for human consumption, ensuring it is devoid of off-flavors, odors, and pests. Furthermore, determining moisture content is crucial for evaluating both wheat and flour quality, as this data underpins further testing. Moisture content determination can involve comparing sample weights before and after oven drying, while advanced techniques like NIR spectrophotometer and halogen moisture analyzer expedite this process. Ensuring proper maintenance and calibration of this equipment is essential for accurate readings.

Though moisture content is pivotal for milling profitability, excessive moisture above 14.5% can foster mold, bacteria, and pests, leading to deterioration and health risks. Low moisture levels enhance storage stability, indicating the necessity of monitoring wheat and flour moisture throughout manufacturing.

TEST WEIGHT

Test weight refers to the weight of grain per unit volume, measured in kilograms per hectoliter (kg/hl) or pounds per bushel (lb/bu). It is a critical metric for millers, correlating with higher milling flour yields, whereas lower test weights, indicative of shriveled and defective kernels, result in diminished flour yields. Consequently, chondrometers should be available in laboratory settings to forecast wheat behavior and extraction rates.

EXPERIMENTAL MILLING

Flour yield depends on the endosperm quantity in the kernel and its successful separation from the bran. A laboratory-scale experimental milling utilizing a Bühler MLU-202 can provide insights into milling quality. However, other laboratory mills also serve to assess wheat milling quality and evaluate flour characteristics.

ASH

Wheat kernels comprise bran, embryo, and endosperm. Flour milling’s objective is to separate these components effectively while minimizing bran contamination within flour. While higher extraction rates may be economically favorable, they can result in excessive bran interference (raising ash content) and increased starch damage, necessitating a balance based on flour usage needs. Ash contamination may also derive from various sources, not always corresponding directly to the bran amount in the flour.

Ash content is typically determined by incinerating a flour sample in a muffle furnace, leaving only ash residue. Alternative rapid methods such as NIR spectrometry are also effective for ash content analysis.

WHITENESS

To minimize human error in color assessment, a Minolta colorimeter serves as the standard method for measuring flour brightness and monitoring color variations. This is crucial for maintaining quality control and defining end product specifications.

PROTEIN

Protein levels represent a vital specification during wheat procurement since they directly influence the water absorption and gluten strength of the flour produced. Lower protein varieties are suited for crispy products like snacks, while higher protein content benefits chewy products such as bread. As such, determining protein content aids millers in classifying wheat for appropriate flour types. Measurement methods involve nitrogen content assessment, such as Kjeldahl and combustion techniques, applying a correction factor for amino acid composition and non-protein nitrogen.

NIR spectrophotometers can expedite protein evaluation, minimizing chemical exposure for analysts.

FALLING NUMBER

Food quality hinges on the activity of alpha-amylase, assessed using the Hagberg Falling Number® System. Elevated alpha-amylase activity leads to sticky dough issues during processing, while excessively high falling numbers can be corrected with enzyme additions, though low numbers do not permit flour extraction solutions.

DAMAGE STARCH

Starch granule integrity is compromised during grinding depending on grain hardness, processing methods, and mill setups. The main consequence of damaged starch is an increased absorption capacity tenfold, significantly affecting dough behavior during fermentation and altering the final product's volume and color. Insufficient control over damage levels could adversely affect flour’s conversion into baked goods. The SDmatic, developed by Chopin Technologies, provides a fast solution for assessing starch damage through amperometric methods.

WET GLUTEN

This test, essential across milling laboratories, evaluates gluten formation from glutenin and gliadin, which influence dough's elasticity and extensibility. Wet gluten is a critical characteristic of wheat flour and must be evaluated through the Glutomatic® System, determining the gluten content and its index, reflecting gluten quality.

RHEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS

Dough rheology is paramount in predicting baked product quality. Variations in elastic and viscous properties among different wheat flour dough types serve as primary quality determinants in baking contexts. Rheological testing aims to distinguish processing properties of various wheat types without conducting baking tests, conserving resources and time while informing practical baking industry insights.

BAKING TEST

To ensure consistent flour quality without necessitating changes for customers, conducting experimental baking trials is critical. These evaluations predict various aspects like volume, color, and texture of the baked goods.

Testing informs users about flour quality features and aids in optimizing production parameters prior to large-scale baking undertakings. Essential evaluations include:

• The equilibrium between gluten strength and dough extensibility
• Dough machinability
• Fermentation conditions
• Impact of additive and flour correctors
• Overall sensory quality of baked items.

References:

[1] Codex Standard 199-, STANDARD FOR WHEAT AND DURUM WHEAT, CODEX STAN (199-), accessible at: FAO Database

[2] Servet, G.S., & Serpil, S. (Eds.). (). Food Engineering Aspects of Baking Sweet Goods. CRC Press. pp. 9-10

[3] Wheat and Flour Testing Methods. A Guide to Understanding Wheat and Flour Quality, Wheat Marketing Center, Inc. Portland Oregon.

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