There was considerable complaint last season, on the part of wheat
raisers in sections tributary to Minneapolis, on account of the rigid
standard of grading adopted by the millers of that city. It was asserted
that the differentiation of prices between the grades was unjustly great
and out of proportion to the actual difference of value. In order to
ascertain whether this was the case or not, the Farmers' Association of
Blue Earth County, Minn., decided to have samples of each grade analyzed
by a competent chemist in order to determine their relative value.
Accordingly specimens were secured, certified to by the agent of the
Millers' Association of Minneapolis, and sent to the University of
Minnesota for analysis. The analysis was conducted by Prof. Wm. A.
Noyes, Ph.D., an experienced chemist, who has recently reported as
follows:
"The analyses of wheat given below were undertaken for the purpose of
determining whether the millers' grades of wheat correspond to an actual
difference in the chemical character of the wheat. For this purpose
samples of wheat were secured, which were inspected and certified to by
M. W. Trexa on April 13th of this year. The inspection cards contained
no statement except the grade of the wheat and the weight per bushel,
but the samples were all of Fife, for the purpose of a better
comparison. The analyses of the wheat were made during October in this
laboratory. In each case the wheat was carefully separated from any
foreign substances before analysis. The results of analysis were as
follows:
Grade Grade Grade
No. 1. No. 2. No. 3.
Weight per bushel.................. 59 lb. 561/2 lb. 55 lb.
Grains to weigh 10 grains.......... 366 474 491
Per ct. Per ct. Per ct.
Foreign matter (seeds, etc.)....... 0.41 0.20 1.57
Nitrogen........................... 2.09 2.08 2.17
Phosphorus......................... 0.35 0.46 0.46
Water.............................. 12.34 11.31 11.85
Ash................................ 1.59 1.92 1.97
Albuminoids (nitrogen multiplied
by 61/4)........................... 13.06 13.00 13.56
Cellulose.......................... 2.03 2.37 2.50
Starch, sugar, fat, etc............ 70.98 71.40 70.12
"The analyses require but little comment. The only substances in which
there is evident connection between the results of analysis and the
grades of wheat are the cellulose, ash, and phosphorus. As regards the
last substance, grades two and three seem to have the greatest food
value. But it seems quite probable from the results that greater
difference would be found between different varieties of wheat of the
same kind than is shown here between different grades of the same
variety of wheat. However, it does not necessarily follow from this that
the different grades of wheat are of nearly equal value to the miller
for the purpose of making flour. That is a question which can be best
answered by determining accurately the amount and character of the flour
which can be made from each grade of wheat. If possible, the
investigation will be continued in that direction."
As Prof. Noyes justly remarks, the value of the different grades of
wheat can best be determined by a comparison of the results of reducing
them to flour, but an intelligent study of the table given above would
of itself be sufficient to indicate the justness of the grading. In the
first place, even were the percentages of the different components
exactly the same in each grade, still the difference in weight would of
itself be sufficient to justify a marked difference in price. This
requires no proof, for, other things being equal, fifty-nine pounds is
worth more than fifty-five pounds. Again, the figures show that No. 3
contained nearly four times as much foreign matter as No. 1. Millers
certainly should not be expected to pay for foreign seeds or other
substances valueless for their purpose, at the price of wheat. Finally,
if the analysis proves anything, it proves that the lower grades contain
a decidedly larger percentage of components which it is generally
agreed, whether directly or the reverse, ought not to be incorporated
with the flour, and are, therefore, of comparatively little value to the
miller. This is shown by the relative amounts of cellulose, ash, and
phosphorus present. Cellulose, as every one knows, is the woody,
indigestible substance which is found in the bran, and the greater the
amount of cellulose, the heavier will be the bran in proportion to the
flour producing elements. According to the figures presented, No. 3
contained nearly one-quarter more cellulose than No. 1, while the amount
in No. 2 was slightly less than in No. 3. The ash, too, which represents
the mineral constituents of the wheat, is directly dependent upon the
quantity of bran. Here, too, the lowest grade is shown to yield about
one-quarter more than the highest. The larger percentage of phosphorus
in the lower grades is suggested by the analyst to indicate their
greater food value in this respect. So it would, were we in the habit of
boiling our wheat and heating it whole, or of using "whole wheat meal."
But, fortunately or unfortunately, the bread reformers have not yet
succeeded in inoculating any considerable portion of the community with
their doctrines, and hence the actual food value of any sample of wheat
must be ascertained, not directly from the composition of the wheat, but
from the composition of the flour made therefrom. Now, as already
stated, phosphorus, like the other mineral components, is found almost
entirely in the bran. Its presence in greater quantity, therefore,
simply adds to the testimony that a larger proportion of the low grade
wheat must be rejected than of the higher grade. It should be evident to
the complaining farmers that the millers were in the right of the
question, on this occasion at least.
It is expected that further analysis will be made, this time of the
flour made from the different grades of wheat. If these investigations
be properly conducted, we have no doubt that they will simply confirm
the evidence of the wheat tests. A chemical analysis alone, however,
will not be sufficient. The quantity of flour obtained from a given
amount of wheat must also be ascertained and its quality further tested
by means best known to millers, as regards "doughing-up," keeping
qualities, color, etc. And then the result can be no less than to show
what millers already knew--that the best quality of flour, commanding
the top prices in the market, cannot be obtained from an inferior
quality of wheat.--_Milling World._
* * * * *